A Blue and Yellow Summer
by keigee
Summary: What was thought to be just a summer vacation spent the commoner way had apparently bound the golden sun and the deep blue sea together. Mori X OC
1. Chapter 1

_A/N: My first Ouran fanfiction. And about the summer being over and the seniors say goodbye to high school, I just used the school schedule (?) here in the Philippines. School starts at June and ends at March or early April and after that is a two-month summer break before the graduates enter college. But in this fanfiction, I put graduation after summer break. This story is fictional, after all. Criticisms, suggestions, and comments are greatly appreciated. ^_^_

A Blue and Yellow Summer

"What was thought to be just a summer vacation spent the commoner way had apparently bound the golden sun and the deep blue sea together." Mori X OC

Chapter 1: Blue + Yellow = Green

(Mori's POV)

"Everyone, I now know the greatest way we should spend this summer vacation!" the blond Tamaki announced whilst atop a table in the Third Music Room. He has been pondering for days on how to make this year's summer break memorable for me and Mitsukuni. Once this summer is over, it's goodbye high school, and goodbye Host Club.

"Tell us! Tell us!" chimed my ecstatic cousin as he jumped down from my shoulders and hopped off to where the Host Club's King was. Two identical redheads looked up from the PSP they've been playing with the whole time and asked Tamaki what it was in perfect unison. They sat comfortably on one of the couches surrounding the table Tamaki had mounted. Across the twins sat a nonchalant Haruhi, who soon found herself staring off into space. Probably planning out her purchases in her grocery shopping after school, I presumed. To her right was Kyouya, tapping relentlessly at his overworked laptop's keyboard and apparently oblivious to any sound.

"I call it, the 'All-Out Commoner Experience'!" Tamaki proclaimed with outstretched arms and a tone painters would use to present their ultimate masterpiece. "It's simple, really. All of us should live in commoner apartments for the whole duration of the summer break. Whether you'll live alone or not is up to you. And thus, we can live a commoner life just like Haruhi! And after going through what she does every day, my daughter's majesty shall be glorified!"

As soon as these words escaped him, Mitsukuni and the Hitachiin twins were instantly enthused. Haruhi twitched at the word "majesty" and I think I just saw bloody murder behind Kyouya's glaring glasses. Alas, the Shadow King has now arisen from his deep slumber. Trying his hardest to suppress his inner demons and keep a cool tone, Kyouya stood up and said, "Surely our parents wouldn't allow that, right?" Oh, right. Apparently all of us but Kyouya forgot about that.

"Do not fret, mother! I have that all taken care of!" Tamaki said as he thumped his chest twice. "I have already asked permission from each of your parents, saying it will be for our independence training and for gaining further knowledge about commoner preferences, which are important aspects for our managing our family's businesses in the near future! Of course, they all agreed, even Kyouya's father too." Tamaki's grin reached up to his ears as Kyouya just sighed in defeat. This sure was going to be trouble. Again. He still haven't forgotten his tortuous predicament when Tamaki dragged him to a commoner's supermarket while he was asleep, and even left him all lost at that.

"And by being a commoner like my daughter, I will then be qualified to be Haruhi's father!" Tamaki swooned as he clutched the evidently annoyed Haruhi around her neck and rubbing his cheek to hers, his blue eyes sparkling like a puppy being given a doggie biscuit.

"Please let me go, Tamaki-senpai. You're still not going to be my biological and legal father with that," Haruhi stated flatly. And with that, Tamaki is sent to his "gloom corner", drawing imaginary circles on the tiled floor with his finger. And like the little devils that they are, Hikaru and Kaoru go and tease the depressed Tamaki until he bursts into a fit of anger and chases the snickering pair around the room. I smiled. I'm surely going to miss this.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

_Beep! Beep! Beep!_

At the sound, my right hand automatically reached to its side until it touched cold metal. Bringing that cold metal closer, I pressed a button and it was abruptly silenced. I sat up groggily, rubbing my not-so-sleepy eyes. 6:00 am. Another day has come, huh? I stretched my creaky arms before standing up and grabbing a green jacket and blue jogging pants from my closet. After slipping them on, I did a few warm-ups before setting off. Time for some exercise! I went to the nearest park and did about 2 laps of jogging. And now comes my real training. I set my old handy timer up and pressed the start button once I sped off running. After the run, I slumped down the nearest bench for a short breather. Then, realizing I shouldn't be wasting any time here, I got up on my feet. Better go back home and make breakfast.

Oh, right! I think I should tell you who I am. The name's Furisaki Miyori, a senior at Higurashi High School. And if you're wondering why I'm training myself so early in the morning at the very start of summer break, let's just say I need it. I'm the captain of our school's track team, after all. And why so early in the morning? Two reasons, actually. One, I have a summer job that starts today at 7 am; and two, it's just my nature to wake up early. I'm one of those people who just happen to wake up early even though I don't intend to. Something to do with my body clock, perhaps? And why the track team, you ask? Actually, I don't quite know, myself. I just happen to feel like flying whenever I run at top speed. The wind whipping against you, your body suddenly feeling so light with every fast succession of your steps—I find those feelings quite similar to flying. Not that I actually tried flying. That's just what people say when asked to describe the feeling of flying. Well enough about that. Let's just go back to the story.

Finally reaching our quite minute house, I took a 5-minute breather or so before I started for the kitchen. But it so happens someone was there before me.

"Mom, let me do that! You should get some more rest," I protested as I saw my cancer-surviving mother chopping vegetables in this cold and foggy early morn.

"Aw, don't worry, dear. I'm already doing well. Thanks to your hard work, I'm steadily recovering from the chemotherapy sessions. This is no problem at all," she said, her almost bald scalp gravely reminding me of her constant fainting spells and morning sicknesses in the times of her many chemotherapy sessions.

"But—"

"Look at the time, Miyori. You're almost late for work aren't you? Let me do this," she said with a signature calming smile. But despite those words and that smile, I still can't help but feel that I should be doing everything there is to do in the house. You couldn't just leave a sick person do work, can you? But with her kind chocolate-brown eyes reassuringly staring at my emerald ones, there was nothing I could do. If you're wondering where my father is, he died a year ago, some time after Mom's second-to-the-last chemotherapy session in a car accident. With no one else bringing in some money for Mom's chemotherapy sessions and her maintenance medicine (yes, I'm an only child), I took the initiative to get after-school and weekend part time jobs. So I'm kind of the breadwinner of the family now.

Once Mom served breakfast, I gobbled them all up, noticing that it was already a quarter to 7. I went to my room to get dressed my new working uniform and grabbed a folder filled with papers containing financial reports, class reports, and stuff like that. Our school's student council work never stops even in summer break, not to mention end of the school year. And being part of the said student council, I am never allowed to skip even one meeting. I'm the student council president, after all. Well, at least until this summer ends, I still am. Once I was sure I had not forgotten anything else, I bid my Mom goodbye and sped off to my workplace, somewhat hoping that this summer will be different and memorable one way or another.

_A/N: Forgive me for the extremely short chapter. I'll try harder to prolong it in the next ones. Note: Try. Haha.. So, thanks so much for reading. The next chapter might take a while since most of the time, my mind is at the state of what I call "Writer's Freeze" since my brain completely freezes and there is nothing I could write. Haha. Thanks again! ^_^_


	2. Chapter 2

_A/N: First of all, I do not own Ouran. I only own Miyori and her mother. Sorry, I forgot to put a disclaimer last time. Hahaha. And thank you soo much for all those who read, especially samasbananas-sama, 61wisampa-sama, and Toolazytologin-sama for reviewing! As I promised, here's chapter 2. Thanks again! ^_^ Oh and here's some information about Miyori. She's the same age as Mori and Hunny and she's 5-6 inches shorter than Mori. So, that's probably all! ^_^_

Chapter 2: Operation Summer, Commence!

(Mori's POV)

_1… _"Hah!" _2… _"Hah!" _3… _"Hah!"…and so on and so forth. Just like that, my usual early-morning kendo training went on peacefully until…

"Takashi, I'm here!" shrilled the all-too familiar childish voice of Mitsukuni. I went out to the gateway to meet him and he skipped along with me into my house. I served him some tea and cake, which tripled his extreme enthusiasm. Right. The "All-Out Commoner Experience" was starting today. Having packed my things the night before, I went with Mitsukuni to his limo after preparing myself. Truth be told, I was actually looking forward to this day. As I loaded my bags in the limo's exceptionally wide baggage compartment, I noticed Mitsukuni's bags were smaller. Well, considering his size, it's quite expected, and he's got an advantage because of that. Smaller bags= lighter baggage.

My rhapsodic cousin talked animatedly about how commoner cakes must taste like in the whole duration of our ride to our apartment building. We have chosen beforehand an apartment building a bit near Haruhi's and have rented individual rooms next to each other. That way, I can monitor my cousin and remind him to brush his teeth always after meals, or else he'll have a cavity again and we all know quite well what happens after that. Bags in hand, me and Mitsukuni boarded the elevator up to the second floor. Our rooms were room number 213 and 214; the latter was mine. I turned the door knob and stepped in my room. Just as I expected, commoner rooms sure are small, but it's livable enough—a single bed to the far right corner, a small study table next to it with 2 drawers, a closet at the left side, a small Japanese dining table, some tatami mats, and a wide sliding window above the study table. I breathed in the room's quaint and humid air. This is by far the best summer I'll ever have since Karuizawa some months ago with the Host Club. It really will be memorable. Good job, Tamaki.

(Miyori's POV)

"Welcome to Heidi Sweets Shop! Have you decided on your order?" I said with a polite bow and a wavering smile for about the nth time that day. It's been like forever since I was standing on these high-heeled boots, going around taking and serving orders in the moderately wide shop. But in reality, only a mere two hours have passed by and the heels were already cutting my life span by three years. The black and white maid outfit was getting kind of itchy, too. And I couldn't help but be conscious about the extremely short skirt of the uniform. It only covered about 9 or 10 inches of my legs and that alone made me want to just lock myself in my room once I get home. Good thing I wore bloomers. But still, this much exposure is just tortuous! '_Miyori, hang in there! Remember, this is all for your mom!' _Right, it's for Mom. I can do this. I can—

"We'd like two choux ala crème and a chocolate mousse, please," said the customer, which snapped me out of my trance and made me quickly take down his order. Continuously taking orders and carrying mouth-watering sweets in a heavy tray from one table to another, I couldn't help but let out a long, tired sigh. I have been doing this part-time job for a year now, but I have never felt this tired in my life. Maybe it's because of the summer heat that makes you want to just lie on the floor at home and sleep till who-knows-when. No, it's not that. I'm not that type at all, or at least I think I'm not. But I know someone in particular that fits that description, and she might be doing just that right now. Maybe what's making me feel tired is my body clock. It would still be class hours in this time of the day, and my body has been accustomed to just sitting right now. It's only used to working after class hours. No, wait. After class hours, I have student council meetings so it's around 1 hour after class. In short, 4 pm up to 7 pm. Yes, I go home _that _late. I find it a mystery myself—how I even manage to find time to study. Maybe I'm just that good of a time manager. But now, I can only wait for the hours to pass until finally….

"Furisaki Miyori-san, your break time starts now," the cashier shouted and the first thing I did when I got to the staff room was sit. The heels were killing me! "High-hells" would be a much more appropriate term for these life-shortening footwear. In fact, these shouldn't be footwear at all. They should be an army weaponry. And as I sat by the huge sliding windows of the staff room, I couldn't help but wish something exciting would happen before this summer, my high school life, comes to an end.

(Mori's POV)

After we had gotten back from grocery shopping, which was the first commoner thing we've ever done I presume, me and Mitsukuni went to the rendezvous Tamaki has designated the day before. At first, me and my cousin were bewildered by the unexpectedly wide nearby supermarket. But we didn't find it hard to go around it because we have been there before, when the Host Club went to (or rather barged in) Haruhi's house for the first time. When we got to the coffee shop just across a vivid candy shop, I kept a close eye on Mitsukuni. For sure, if I take my eyes off him for a second, I wouldn't be surprised to find his arms full of candy.

"Mommy, the twins are being mean!" Tamaki whined at Kyouya, who only turned his back from the ruckus.

"That's because you're freaking out too much about the twins picking Haruhi up. I mean, what's wrong with that?" Kyouya stated with his host smile and a somewhat mischievous glint in his gray eyes. Haruhi merely rolled her chestnut eyes. There they go again.

"Good morning, everyone!" my ecstatic cousin chimed amidst the chaos. Ah, his own little way of settling them all down. And just like that, the twin's mocking ceased and the frenzied Tamaki slowly returned to normal and greeted us.

"Alright! Now that we're all here, let us go to the park! There we can play in the summer sun like commoners do!"

"Tono, why don't we..

"..have a picnic?" chorused the psyched-up Hikaru and Kaoru.

"Haruhi, my daughter, we should go to a mall and buy a basket and some sandwiches! If you may, please lead us the way!" Tamaki declared while tucking his arm under hers and Haruhi just sighed in defeat. Then I noticed. Mitsukuni was not by my side anymore. My eyes searched the now-crowded area frantically, hoping to see a sign of that light brown head, but there was none. Acting upon instinct, I went to the candy shop we saw earlier. But then, a huge sign by the door met my sight. "Only for children. Guardians, please watch outside," the sign said. You have got to be kidding me. My heart beat went faster until I swear it skipped a beat when I still didn't see Mitsukuni in the sea of children. This is _not _happening. Mitsukuni, where are you?

(Miyori's POV)

Searching for some kind of entertainment for the rest of my one-hour break, I let my attention wander to the busy shops lined up in the street. Oh, this is a good one! I could observe that weird candy shop across the street and note what kind of candy is bought the most. The kids' guardians, as usual, sat by the bench outside the shop. This is why that candy shop is so weird. It only allows kids in, and lets their guardians wait outside. But still, it was quite flooded ever since its opening, probably because it sells imported treats and stuff. Then, something absurd happened. Two men in the shop's uniform went out by the shop's backdoor, carrying a large sack. Then, when the two men crossed the street, I think I just saw the sack move a bit. Then, my suspicions grew when they entered the dark alley just beside where I was. I hid myself, but still allowing myself to see their every move. And when they unloaded whatever it was inside the sack, my eyes widened. Shock. Nothing but shock registered in my mind. Inside that large sack was a little boy with hair in such a light shade of brown that it almost looked like he was blond. He was tied up and gagged with a white handkerchief, which I presumed contained a sleeping drug because the boy's eyes were as shut as a clam. Then the two men began to search his pockets and I waited no more. I rushed out of the shop, still clad in my uniform and the heels. In fact, I found the heels quite useful now. Leave it to these deadly things to knock those robbers/ kidnappers out. Finally, my wish was granted. This is beyond exciting.

_A/N: Again, really really sorry for the short chapter (again). I guess I'm just not good with making long chapters..haha...As always, criticisms, comments, and suggestions are greatly appreciated. And again, because of my writer's freeze and this evil thing called school, the next chapter might take about a week or so..School is back..T_T. Oh well, thanks sooo much for reading! Review if you want! _^_^


	3. Chapter 3

_**A/N:**__ So, uh, here's chapter 3! Thanks soo much for R&R-ing Wisdom-sama, Le Dancing Flamingo-sama, and The Midnight Shadow Star-sama, and..Tony-san? Thanks soo much for the suggestions and comments. And Tony-san, about my "writer's freeze" thing, read my A/N at the bottom of the first chapter. Thanks for reading!Thanks soooo much everyone! Oh, and this is my final adieu before I'll go on a 4-day hiatus because of evil school. So, that's all. And here's a flashback, which Shadow-sama (can I call you that?) suggested:  
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_Inside that large sack was a little boy with hair in such a light shade of brown that it almost looked like he was blond. He was tied up and gagged with a white handkerchief, which I presumed contained a sleeping drug because the boy's eyes were as shut as a clam. Then the two men began to search his pockets and I waited no more. I rushed out of the shop, still clad in my uniform and the heels. In fact, I found the heels quite useful now. Leave it to these deadly things to knock those robbers/ kidnappers out. Finally, my wish was granted. This is beyond exciting._

Chapter 3: And Thus, Green was Created

(Mori's POV)

I searched the shop again and again with my usually keen eyes, but still no sign of Mitsukuni. Then, my jet-black eyes widened. At the far right of the cashier's counter sat a pink stuffed rabbit that I was too familiar with. It was none other than Usa-chan, just sitting there, _all alone. _Mitsukuni won't ever take his hands off of the bunny for a split second even at home, so why abandon it now, in a public shop filled with children? Under normal circumstances, this would never happen. But oh, I forgot. This wasn't a normal circumstance. Something really must have happened to him, and I don't know what. But all I know right now is that I must find him. I planned to search the whole street, even the whole town if needed, but as I turned around, my phone rang.

"Hello? Mori-senpai?" said the somewhat boyish voice of Haruhi. "Where are you, senpai? Tamaki-senpai is freaking out here in the supermarket worrying about you and even plans to call a search-and-rescue squad. Good thing Hikaru and Kaoru are here to restrain him." Then, it all went noisy and I presumed they were forcibly taking Haruhi's phone by Haruhi's "Give it back!" statements. After about 10 seconds, the noise settled down and I heard some panting before a frantic voice spoke.

"Mori-senpai! Where are you? Are you and Hunny-senpai alright?" It was Tamaki, speaking with almost no pauses for air. "I couldn't contact Hunny-senpai. What happened to him?"

"That's what I'm trying to know," I spoke, my worry and anxiety almost swallowing my words. Then I heard a series of gasps and "Eh"'s and "Are you serious?" over the phone. I guess they put me on loud speaker. And to their frantic questions, I merely nodded and, realizing they couldn't see it, gave them my monosyllabic reply: "Yeah."

"Should I call our search-and-rescue team, Mori-senpai?" spoke a cool baritone voice that was unmistakably Kyouya's.

"No, don't," I said, not wanting to burden anyone else since it's my job to protect Mitsukuni. And as if reading my mind, the Host Club's leader spoke up, now serious.

"Please tell us where you are, Mori-senpai. We'd all like to help," he said in his gallant, princely voice. And knowing it's impossible to stop a determined Tamaki, I gave them the name of the shop, which was Miracle Candy Shop.

"I know where that is," spoke Haruhi. Then the call ended.

Well, the shop sure did stick to its name. For it had just miraculously made my cousin disappear.

(Normal POV)

"Stop right there, you scums!" yelled an enraged Miyori as she glared at two crouching figures of men from a short distance away, her rasp and almost masculine voice sending shivers to their spines. Their eyes widened with shock and guilt, then were suddenly filled with anger. One man lunged at the girl clad in a maid costume and high-heeled boots, but was only met with a strong fist drilling in his stomach. And as he cringed in pain, he was given an axe kick, the strong pang of the heels knocking him down and almost rendering him brain-dead. As if avenging his partner in crime, the other man charged forth, one fist clenched and ready for attack. But as he was about to deliver the punch, his chin met the deadly heels of Miyori and was sent a bit elevated from the ground. Her green orbs sparkling in delight, Miyori performed her specialty—the roundhouse kick. Her fiery red hair danced with the wind until she landed steadily on the asphalt ground. The men fell unconscious and Miyori dusted her shoulders in pride and victoriously smirked.

"That'll teach you to mess with Dad's finest," she scoffed at the two immobile bodies before walking over to the unconscious boy. Right, her dad was a judo mentor. And she was his best student.

(Miyori's POV)

"Are you alright?" I asked at the still unconscious boy. I checked his pulse just to be sure and thankfully, it was still beating. I picked up his wallet and returned it to the left pocket of his jeans. For a little boy, that was quite a big wallet. Bigger than mine, at that. But maybe it's just filled with those playing cards that boys his age rave about nowadays. I patted his cheeks gently in a futile attempt to wake him up, then placed the back of my right hand on his forehead. His temperature seems to be okay. Then, I heard a deep voice from behind.

"Mitsukuni!"

(Mori's POV)

As soon as the Host Club met up, we split up in pairs, and I was to search in the street of that candy shop with Kyouya. We agreed to call each other once we see a sign of my cousin and to search in different lanes. Kyouya was to search in the lane of the candy shop, and I was to search the one opposite it. I rummaged through every shop there was, especially the only sweets shop in sight. He probably just skipped off to this shop to take a bite or something. But I didn't see him in any of the tables. I went to the cashier to tell her of my predicament and asked her if it was okay to search the staff room, too. Luckily, she agreed and I rushed into the room at once. I looked through every nook and cranny but still no Mitsukuni.

Then, as I was about to sigh in defeat, a light shade of brown caught my attention. It was that same shade of brown as Mitsukuni's, and he was just beyond the huge sliding window of the room. His eyes were shut, and a handkerchief was tied around his mouth. As I heard what sounded like clicking of boots approaching Mitsukuni after a loud thud, I ran out instantly. But I was caught in the traffic of maids going back and forth to the many tables of the shop, and it took me like 2 minutes to thread through the line of customers just by the doorway. Finally, I reached the alley beside the sweets shop and I was about to run straight ahead to my knocked-out cousin when I was taken aback by what met my sight. The aforesaid clicking of boots was caused by a crimson-haired girl wearing a maid outfit exactly like that of the sweets shop's throng of maids and high-heeled boots. Behind her, and right in front of me, were two unconscious men who identical light pink shirts. In one of their shirts, I read the name "Miraculous Candy Shop" and a large white sack lay not far away from them. Right then and there, I figured out the puzzle pieces. These two were kidnappers, and the girl I was first suspicious of was actually Mitsukuni's saviour. Before forgetting, I called Kyouya over and knew he was a bit far away from where I was. Then, the girl crouched down in front of my cousin and grabbed his right wrist and laid two fingers on it, probably to check his pulse. Afterwards, she picked up something near her proximity and shoved it in my cousin's left pocket. Then, as if to further prove her innocence, she patted my cousin's cheeks gently and even checked his temperature. Now I was sure she was innocent, so I called out my cousin's name.

"Mitsukuni!"

(Miyori's POV)

I whirled around to the source of the voice, and saw the silhouette of a tall and dark-haired man. I presumed he was the boy's brother, but as he drew near, I realized he was a lot taller than it seems. Then, it hit me that he probably suspects me and in defence, I straightened up.

"Ah, this is not what you think! Those two men were—" I tried to explain but his answer was quick.

"I know." That stunned me a bit, especially because I looked like I was trying to steal the boy's wallet. Then, another guy came into the scene. He was also dark-haired, though his hair was longer, and his glasses shone in the sunlight. She came up to us in such a quick pace that it caught me off-guard.

"Mori-senpai, is she.." he started, but then the guy, whose name was Mori, shook his head.

"It's those guys." He turned his head toward the two men I had just knocked out while he untied the ropes on the boy's feet (I had removed the ones on his hand earlier) and also the gag about his mouth. And at that moment, the boy opened his eyes, revealing half-lidded hazel orbs, and started to speak in a weak voice, "Ta…ka—"

"Don't talk," Mori-san said, hoisting the finally-conscious boy onto his back and said, "Hang on." The guy with glasses, who was on the phone the whole time, turned to me and smiled. I found the smile quite weird, but I couldn't point out how.

"We're very thankful of you, miss. You have just saved my friend's life. Thank you so much for your bravery and courage. If you would, please accompany us to your shop," he said in what sounded to me like a rehearsed tone. "You work there at Heidi Sweets Shop, don't you?" At first, the fact that he knew that kind of freaked me out. But then I remembered. I was wearing the maid costume. Right. And so, I nodded. "Then, we'd like to make purchases in your shop as much as we could," he said as we started to walk out of the dark alley. I didn't really need a reward, but if it means more money, then the better. But still, my conscience would haunt me forever for freely accepting this big a reward, even if I really deserved it.

"You really don't need to, you know," I forced a smile to shake off my screaming conscience.

"No need to be embarrassed. This is to show our gratitude for your life-saving courage and strength. So, please accept our offer," he said too kindly that I just couldn't refuse anymore. So, all four of us went in the shop, receiving a lot of shocked (and envious) stares from my blushing girl workmates. Then all of a sudden, our door burst open with a loud announcement.

"MORI-SENPAI! HUNNY-SENPAI! WE HAVE COME TO THE RESCUE!" proclaimed a blond guy gallantly, as if he were to rescue a princess or something. Then, two guys who were exact copies of each other sent a clenched fist on the blonde's head. A girl with chestnut-brown hair just sighed as she said, "Senpai, stop humiliating us." I had placed the company of the little boy in a table and when the blonde spotted them, he whizzed right into the table, screaming things like "I'm so glad you're safe!" and stuff like that in a fatherly way. The blonde's company followed suit and finally noticing my existence, they thanked me and went on and on about how they'll thank me by giving me a house and lot, a car, a private jet, and a lot more stuff only rich people could buy, so I just shrugged off their statements as mere fantasies. Then, I stared at that brown-haired girl closer. She looked achingly familiar, but I couldn't put my finger on it. Then, it hit me. The famous commoner scholar of the prestigious Ouran High School was brown-haired, I heard. And that scholar was from Higurashi Middle School.

"Excuse me," I said facing her, "Do you, by any chance, come from Higurashi Middle School?" Then, her eyes widened in shock and confusion at the same time. And slowly she nodded her head and said, "Yes." I gasped too loudly that I had to cover my mouth in embarrassment. All her friends' (I think) attention was on me. Then hesitantly, I uttered a sentence that I never knew would actually drag me into the exciting summer I've always dreamed of.

"Are you Fujioka Haruhi?"

_A/N: Well, at least it got A BIT longer. hahaha.. And now starts my 4-day hiatus...Waahh, I'm gonna miss Miyori and everyone! Bye bye fanfiction, hello school..T^T_


	4. Chapter 4

_A/N: Finally! 4 days of misery is over! Chapter 4 is here! Forgive for the lack of creativity..haha..I was writing most of this during class and I had to switch my attention from this to teacher from time to time so, yeah...Thanks soooo much Shadow-chan and Chishio-sama! Yay! Really, thanks so much! Okay, too much blabbering..Here we go!_

Chapter 4: Twisted Colours

(Mori's POV)

"Are you Fujioka Haruhi?"

With that one question, all of us fell silent at once. I was quite shocked myself that the red-haired stranger knew Haruhi's identity, but as always, my face didn't show that much. But for the rest of the Host Club (except Kyouya of course), shock was written all over their face. Any second now, Tamaki would freak out about his "daughter's" identity being revealed. That, or he'll probably think up some kind of plan (or threat) to force her not to tell anyone under any circumstances. I sighed. He's probably concocting that plan/threat right at this very second. Then, he closed his eyes as if in deep meditation. Probably polishing his plan, I guess. His blue eyes opened once again. 3… 2… 1….

"Hikaru, Kaoru," he said with a snap of his fingers. And the next minute, the three were whizzing off to the nearest room there was- the staff room- dragging the confused crimson-haired girl. Haruhi was close behind them, yelling things like "Tamaki-senpai, stop that!" or "Where did all your thankfulness go?" and stuff like that. Me, Kyouya, and Mitsukuni, who was already fine, followed suit. But we were only followed by confused and alarmed stares by the shop's staff. Luckily, Kyouya had decided to use his host skills on them. Well, he would do anything for a clean reputation, plus this was daily work, after all.

"I apologize for my friends' rude behaviours," he said to the cashier with that host smile of his, which caused the wonderstruck girl to blush madly just like all the girls we served at school. "We are currently solving a personal problem, so I must ask of your consideration to let us use your staff room for a while." He gave them a well-rehearsed look of apology, which always left me wondering how he could act so well. Once the cashier nodded slowly, eyes glued to Kyouya, he turned to the maids who were also staring at him. "We'll try to solve the problem as fast as possible, so I ask of your consideration and forgiveness. We'll pay for any damage my friends will most possibly cause…" and on and on he went. But the girls weren't even listening anymore. They all turned apple-red, some cupping their cheeks, their eyes shaped like hearts, and…were they drooling? Well, we'll take that as a yes.

We rushed into the small room, first being blocked by a yelling Haruhi who was struggling in the firm grasp of the Hitachiin twins on her two arms. Then, the sight I half-expected met my eyes. My cousin's saviour was tied to a chair, from her shoulders downwards. Well, this is what she gets as thanks from the Host Club after saving one of its members.

(Miyori's POV)

"Wha—" I started in an attempt to demand a reasonable explanation for what they had just done to me, but as always, that Tamaki just has to stop me.

"You have discovered Haruhi's true gender, which should never be revealed," he said and I sort of twitched. Is he saying that knowing Haruhi is a crime? Really, what next? I'm a criminal for knowing my own mother? I just shrugged his statement as he babbled stuff like "Our father-daughter time would disappear entirely!" and yelled the brunette's name as he ran to her. Father and daughter? What was he supposed to be, a father at 2 years old or something? You have got to be kidding me. If my hands weren't tied up, I would've face-palmed. But a low voice with a hint of killing intent stopped me from doing so. In fact, it had frozen me entirely.

"Tamaki," spoke that dark voice, which came from that guy with glasses. Right now, he was emitting a dangerously threatening aura, which sent shivers to my spine. And to think at first he was all smiling and kind. I knew it. That was a façade. And he was really good at it.

"Yes mother?" the Tamaki dude chimed innocently and I cringed. Did he realize he was talking to someone with so much killing intent right now? Apparently not. That is, until the guy emitting the life-threatening aura spoke again.

"Shut up." Talk about simplicity is beauty. Those two words and a death glare aimed at no other than Tamaki was enough to take at least 10 years off of him. The aforesaid blond shrunk into a corner in utter fear. The guy who wore glasses, who Tamaki called mother (and I wonder why), had scared the soul out of him. The twins had also let go of Haruhi and had shrunk along to the corner with Tamaki. I just sat there, frozen in fear and just watching the life escape Tamaki. Then, the most frightening happened. The guy who has just taken like 3 years off my life span was approaching me. Oh God, I'm dead. Goodbye summer.

(Mori's POV)

Slowly approaching the girl, Kyouya forced a kind look (which he surprisingly achieved) before he spoke. Well, that was easy. I just hope the girl won't sue us or something.

"We're very sorry for our rude and unjust actions," Kyouya began with his signature host smile. On instinct, I went over to the back of the girl and began untying the ropes, which were knotted quite easily. Then I noticed her wrists were also tied up. They really went this far? The ropes around her body loosened and she tried to take them off but, realizing her wrists were tied up, she sat still again. As I began untying the ropes around her wrists, I noticed her hands were quite calloused. Probably because of beating those kidnappers earlier. Once the ropes were gone, she turned to me and said thanks before standing up and taking off the ropes around her body.

"Okay, I understand you're gonna pay for all this and yada yada yada," she started as she stood up facing Kyouya, "but could you _please_explain to me why I was, er, imprisoned like this?" I inwardly complimented her height, which surpassed Kyouya's about 4 inches more or less. I glanced at the heels of her dark boots. Exactly how much taller she was than Kyouya. I even saw Kyouya's eyes widen a bit because of her unexpectedly tall height, which we all failed to notice at first. Then she slumped back into the chair in frustration. Well, being tied like this without any explanation and listening to stuff you don't understand sure would be frustrating. Normally, anyone in this kind of situation would kick and scream their lungs out asking for a reasonable enough explanation for them not to sue their captors. But surprisingly, this girl just calmly asked what was happening and just sat back.

"I mean, just knowing Fujioka Haruhi's gender is now a crime? When was she _not_a girl?" she said with her emerald eyes turning more and more speculative by the second. Then with a sigh, she closed her eyes and shrugged her shoulders before she said, "Is it my fault we were once schoolmates?" And immediately, everyone turned their heads to her in shock. This girl never fails to surprise us.

(Miyori's POV)

"You are Furisaki Miyori-san of Higurashi High School, yes?" he asked me in a calm voice, which left me utterly scared. Was he omniscient by any chance? Or was he just an information-collecting freak? Either way, that just scared me. After recovering from my shock, I gathered all my calm to speak.

"W-why do you know that?" I spoke in a shivering tone. This guy was a complete stranger. Yet how does he know that?

"If I'm not mistaken, you won a gold medal for the female category of last year's Interschool Olympics and even the year before that. Though you were offered to be Japan's track and field representative for the Olympic Games this year, you couldn't accept it because you still had studies and student council responsibilities to attend to. Plus, you are graduating this year so it was refused. You are from Class 3-A and you are the school's student council president, correct?" My jaw dropped. Straight down to the floor. And it was glued there. This guy is officially creepy. Creepily omniscient, at that. Then it hit me. He could just go tell the Olympic Games people that I am available right now. And after all the effort the teachers have gone through to convince all the students to conceal my identity. I'll then be dragged all the way to China to train all day. But of course that wasn't my problem. My problem was leaving my mother all alone in the house. My _sick_mother. Oh [insert profane word here]. He's going to use this information to blackmail me. I really am dead.

(Mori's POV)

Miyori froze in front of me and I noticed all the other club members' eyes were glued to her. Even mine. She was the rumoured Furisaki Miyori that won a lot of track and field competitions, even the Interschool Olympics all around Japan. She is said to be able to complete two 400-meter dashes in less than 3 minutes. Now that was amazing, and so is the fact that that runner is right here with us now. But to her, it was not. It was life threatening. Kyouya could go call an Olympic Games higher-up right now and tell him Furisaki Miyori has agreed to be Japan's representative since she's free during the summer. I noticed her turn as white as snow. Well, I was right. The poor girl.

_A/N: Yeah, poor girl. First, she had to suffer the Host Club's idiocy, courtesy of Tamaki and the twins. Second, she is now a blackmail target of the one and only Shadow King! Haha..But the excitement starts here (I hope). Oh well, as always, criticisms, suggestions, and comments are always welcome! Thanks for reading and review if you want! ^_^_


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5- I Wonder What Student Council Work Is?

_A/N: Exactly what I want to ask…haha…Oh, very very very very veeeery sorry for the super duper late update…Been very busy with school lately because of the student teachers (just ask me if you want to know what they are). But, oh well…My hands have been itching to type this down for days now, add to that the constant pestering of a friend of mine (you know who you are), so here's chapter 5…hahaha.._

"Furisaki Miyori-san," Mr. Shadows spoke, his glasses glinting, "you can probably guess by now that we are quite rich. My family actually has connections to some officials in the Olympic Games. Now, if you don't want to get shipped to China this very instant, you'll keep quiet about all this and pretend we never met." His cold and scary aura was back again, and everyone had freezed in the background (except of course Haruhi and that tall guy. They just stood there deadpan). But I had seen this coming. Yep, I knew it. Almost the same lines I had expected. I stood up in a sudden motion that Mr. Shadows raised his eyes sceptically at me. I smirked.

"It seems someone doesn't know his position here," I said. I saw his eyes widen a bit. "It's true that you can go tell some official that I'm free for the summer and all, but that is all you know about me, right? In short, you only hold my freedom. But I know about Haruhi being a girl, which is pretty obvious, and that you guys have a tendency to be kidnappers. In short, I hold both Haruhi's gender information and your reputations." I didn't exactly know who they are but since they are rich, probably just describing them would give people an idea of who I'm pertaining to. Glasses Dude's eyes narrowed then he suddenly smiled (or was it a smirk?).

"Okay, I understand where you're getting at. Well, instead of making this sound like blackmail, let's make it a deal then."

"Okay then," I spoke to prevent him from saying anything else. He might turn the tables around. "I'll keep quiet about Haruhi being a girl if you keep quiet about me being free for the summer. And about your reputations, I'll keep you guys sounding good if you do what I want you to do." There was a pretty long pause. He was probably thinking it through.

"Okay. We'll do as you say, plus we'll repay you for rescuing Hunny-senpai," he said in a calm manner as he glanced at the little boy I just saved. Did he just say senpai?

"Eh?" The twins and Tamaki chorused.

"Mommy, why are you agreeing to this?" Tamaki wailed but suddenly stopped when Mr. Shadows gave him a smile so knowing that one could guess right away he had something else up his sleeves.

"So, what do you want us to do?" Mr. Shadows asked. The twins were still quite dumbfounded. What? Is it that unusual for a girl to make a guy do her bidding? Well, it may be unusual in normal circumstances, but in school, all my co-members of the student council are guys, so I'm quite used to ordering guys around—Wait a minute. Light bulb.

"Student council work." My smirk widened.

"Eh? What's that?" the twins asked together.

"Oh, you'll know soon. But there's one thing I want to know, though. Why do we have to conceal Haruhi's true gender? I mean, it's pretty obvious. Something must have happened at Ouran." Then, I eyed them suspiciously. "What did you do to her?"

"It's really nothing, Miyori-san," Haruhi spoke with a sheepish smile and a somewhat boyish voice that I failed to notice a while ago.

"Yeah, she just happened to stumble into the Host Club…" one of the twins said.

"…and broke our 8,000,000 yen vase," the other one finished. The vase was how much?

"And so I was forced to join the Host Club as a male host since everyone in school mistook me as a guy with my haircut and clothes, and because it's a quicker way to pay my debt."

"F-forced….?" Tamaki sobbed and went to a corner.

"What's the Host Club?" I asked and instantly, Tamaki sprung up emitting rays of light. Rose petals suddenly flew around him. Where the heck did those come from?

"Oh, my fair princess! You've been locked up in your tower for too long! But do not fret! We, the Host Club, shall free you there and take you to a new dimension!" he said with exaggerated hand movements and a prince-like tone. I twitched. Princess? Oh, so they were the Host Club.

"Ookay…So what exactly do you guys do?"

"To put it simply, we entertain girls at our school and they pay for it since they're all rich," Haruhi stated. "The girls can choose which 'type' they want to designate. This is Suoh Tamaki-senpai. He's the prince type, or so they say." She pointed at the grinning Tamaki beside her. "That is Ootori Kyouya-senpai, the cool type." She glanced at Mr. Shadows. Oh, so Kyouya was his name. And I think I've heard of those surnames before. They really are rich.

"He's also known as the Shadow King. Don't ask why," the twins chorused. I think we all know very well why.

"Oh, these are Hitachiin Hikaru and Kaoru. They're the little devil types." The twins grinned.

"Suitable title," I said under my breath.

"He is Haninozuka Mitsukuni-senpai, but we all call him Hunny-senpai or Hunny-kun. He's the loli-shota type, and believe it or not, he's 18." The little boy skipped to my side and grinned.

"Thanks for saving me earlier, Miyo-chan~! Ne, can I eat cake now?" he said in a very childish voice. It'll be hard to make me believe he's 18.

"And he is Morinozuka Takashi-senpai, also called Mori-senpai . And he's the wild type." She glanced at the tall guy.

"Thanks for saving Mitsukuni," he said in the deepest voice I've ever heard. I've noticed he never really talked much. Of all the people here, he was the most silent. And it just so happens that I have this kind of fetish to go and approach quiet people. There's just something about their silence that urges me to talk to them. My best friend was once a shy and quiet type, too. Though I doubt this guy is shy. Then I noticed I was already staring at him so I spoke.

"Oh, no problem! Hehehe…" I said with a grin. "So, are you two like, brothers or something?"

"Cousins." Well, he sure is savvy with words.

"Ooh…So, you're pretty close, huh?" He just nodded in reply. "Hehe…Must be pretty fun to have such a lively person with you, huh?" He just nodded again. For most people, this kind of lack of response can get annoying. But I really didn't mind it. In fact, it felt somehow fun talking to him when I think of how stupid I must look being replied to with just a nod. I gave out a small giggle that made him turn to me with a bit of bewilderment. I grinned widely. Finally, a new emotion on his face. Then, Hunny skipped to us, clutching a pink stuffed bunny.

"Ne, Miyo-chan. Can I eat cake now~?" he asked me.

"Oh, sure!" Hunny gave a whoop of joy as he clutched at my left arm. "You guys, let's get out now!" I shouted at the other Host Club members. With Mori and Hunny, I led the way to their table.

"So, what year are you two in?"

"We're in third year~! Me and Takashi are classmates, too~!"

"We're in the same year then! So, can I call you guys Hunny-kun and Mori-kun?"

"Sure~!" Hunny-kun said and Mori-kun nodded as they sat. Everyone else followed suit.

"Since you're in the same year as Hunny-senpai and Mori-senpai," Hikaru (or Kaoru?) said.

"..we should call you Miyori-senpai then?" Kaoru continued.

"Okay! Miyori-senpai it is!" they chorused. Well, that sounded a bit awkward. Minutes later, I watched Hunny-kun devour all the cake in stock in one breath. I just stood there, eyes dilated and jaw-dropping.

"Don't worry, Miyori-senpai. That's just his normal consumption," said Kyouya, who I learned to be a second year, along with the enraged Tamaki. Why he was enraged? Well, the first year twins have decided to mess with the Host Club's king. Hikaru stuffed a spoon of cake to their classmate Haruhi's mouth, and Kaoru wiped some cream off of Haruhi's face with his finger.

"HOW DARE YOU LAY YOUR FILTHY HANDS ON MY DAUGHTER!" Tamaki shrieked. Then he halted when Kyouya sent him a death glare. It seems he was the only one who noticed people were already looking at them.

"See you guys at school tomorrow! You better be there at 8 am sharp or you get more work!" I shouted at them as I fled out of the shop, now in my comfortable sneakers, plain white T's and jeans. Finally, work was done. I sprinted up the inclining path to my house with a huge smile plastered on my face. Not only have I found some extra hands for student council work, but I've also found some interesting new people that could make this summer less boring, especially that quiet Mori-kun. His and Hunny-kun's surnames sound familiar, but I couldn't point my finger on it. I just shoved the thought away and continued on. I kept thinking about how to approach him tomorrow, or what things will make hi m talk. I couldn't help but smile all the way to home.

(Mori's POV)

"Yay~! I ate so much cake today~!" my cousin beamed, tossing his bunny in the air as we walked up the path to our apartment building. Earlier, Tamaki had said we shouldn't ride any form of transportation "like commoners who can't afford such a convenience".

"Ne, Takashi. Gomen ne. I wandered off to that candy shop without your permission. I really let my guard down since there were so much sweets around me. Gomen ne."

"No, I'm sorry," I replied. It was my fault in the first place, for not keeping a close eye on Mitsukuni. All that never would've happened, and now we'll be doing student council work for the rest of the summer. Of course, I was okay with all that, but I didn't know about Mitsukuni.

"You don't have anything to be sorry about, Takashi. In fact, because of what happened, I got to eat a lot of cake~! And we get to go see a public school and work there~!" I knew he'd say that. I don't know just how he could be so positive. "Demmo ne, Miyo-chan is such a cool person! She fought off those kidnappers, and even defeated the Shadow King in his forte~! Sugoi ne~?" He had a point there. She really was different. No ordinary girl would jump right into a crime scene and defeat the criminals on her own. Nor can any girl (or person) even speak in front of the Shadow King, much less counter him. But she did. She was very different, even from her height. She was unusually tall for girls her age. And most of all, she talked to me so casually. Me. No girl has ever done that, well, except Haruhi. The girls at my school would be afraid or shy to talk to me since I don't respond much, and they'll just tire themselves out trying to start a conversation with me, since I really don't like talking too much. But she even smiled, not stopping at talking to me. It was as if she was enjoying it. She is one different girl. As different as this summer is probably going to be.

(The Next Day)

"We're here," stated Haruhi as we approached some gates. Ahead was a fairly large school building with approximately three floors. Tamaki and the twins gasped as if they saw a world wonder. Then, a familiar red head jogged up to us in probably the school's uniform. I inwardly commented on how different she looked in a school uniform compared to yesterday. I don't know in what way, though.

"Yo, guys! Good to see you're here on time! Now, let's go!" Miyori said in that same lively way as when she kept talking to me yesterday. Normally, I'd be annoyed when someone keeps asking me questions just to keep up a conversation with me. But somehow, she wasn't annoying at all. It was kind of…..comforting. "This here's the first year floor!"

"Eh? Isn't it summer vacation? Why are there some students having classes?" Tamaki asked as we passed a room with about 5 students and a teacher.

"Summer school, perhaps?" Kyouya said.

"Correct! Now, let's go up to the second year floor!" Miyori said as she jogged up a set of stairs. We followed suit until the next ones. "We're here!" As we got up to the third floor, we noticed there were several guys waiting outside a room with a "Student Council Room" sign above it. Miyori greeted them a lively "Good Morning" and, receiving bunches of greetings, she stepped in to the room. Suddenly, they all went stiff and pale. They seemed to make a path for someone but all we could see was a cloud of dark aura. A while later, the source of that aura emerged. It was a small girl, about the size of Mitsukuni, her hands in the pockets of her uniform skirt, and her bag dangling on her wrist. Strapped across her small body was what seemed to be a wooden katana. She halted in front of Tamaki, who was leading.

"Move it," she said in a threatening, dark voice and dealt a death glare at Tamaki. A death glare that parred with Kyouya's. It made Tamaki and the twins move aside instantly, clutching at each other and as white as a sheet of paper. The girl walked into the room beside us, with a "3-A" sign above the door. Suddenly, Miyori came out of the student council room.

"What's the matter, guys? Come on in," she said.

"PRESIDENT! RIN-SENPAI HAS PUT A CURSE ON US!" shrieked one of the guys.

"That girl…." Tamaki whimpered.

"SO SCARY!" Tamaki and the twins chorused.

"Oh, it's about Rin. Hey, don't be so scared, people. She may just be in a bad mood today, but really , she's a nice person," Miyori stated.

"She's _always_ in a bad mood!" one guy screamed.

"She just might beat us up into mince meat like she did with the kendo and judo club two years ago," said one guy.

"That rumor was true?" yelped another one.

"There's also a rumor that says when you look into her eyes for 5 seconds or more, you'll get cursed!"

"No way! So that second year Kubota-kun really was cursed!" Tamaki and the twins had joined in on the conversation. Then, I looked at Mitsukuni. Normally, he'd be there together with them, but he just stood by me and stared at the door that girl just entered. He didn't seem to be scared of her. In fact, he stared off with curiosity.

"They ain't listening, huh?" Miyori said as she approached us and sighed.

"Hmm…I think I've heard those rumors before. The one where a certain first year high school girl beat up a whole kendo and judo club on her own. Is that true, senpai?" Haruhi asked at Miyori.

"Well, yeah…That is true. But the kendo club president started it! He saw the wooden katana Rin was carrying and challenged her to a fight, saying she was too puny to even make a move with it. So Rin beat him up, along with his club. Then, the judo club joined in and were beaten, too." Haruhi's jaw dropped, and so did Mitsukuni's. Well, that was one rotten kendo club president. Kendo isn't for oppressing the weak, it's for protecting them. At least that's what I believe. "But really, Rin's a nice girl. Just needs time to get along with," Miyori said with a knowing smile.

"Are you friends with her, Miyo-chan~?" my cousin chimed.

"Correction. _Best _friends," she said with a grin. "Okay, people! Enough with the ruckus! Let's get to work!" she shouted at the bustling students. Tamaki and the twins went on inside, and so we followed. Then, she turned to me with a smile so bright it beat the sun shining on her and left me stunned.

"Let's go!"

_A/N: Nyaaa~! Sorry if I'm not so creative…Just a novice anyway…hahaha…well, about the Rin girl, you shall know her more in the next chapter...Well, that's all…The next chapter will __**probably **__be published by tomorrow night. I'll keep doing my best ! Gambaremasu! ^_^  
>Oh, and comments, suggestions, and criticisms are always welcome! ^_^<em>


	6. Chapter 6

_A/N: So, yeah…chapter 6. I made this while keeping my mother company in the hospital. She was diagnosed with pulmonia (or was it pneumonia? Not so sure. I know, I'm a bad daughter). And note to self: Hospitals improve your creativity. Though I'm not so sure you could agree…haha…Oh, and before I forget. Disclaimer: I don't own Ouran. If I did, I would've been married to Kyouya. xD_

Chapter 6- Student Council President

(Mori's POV)

"President! Where do these go?" hollered one guy at Miyori as he carried two boxes filled with seemingly worn-out baseball mitts.

"Oh, just put those in the stock room!" Miyori yelled back as she wiped a bead of sweat on her forehead. We had been carrying boxes and crates from one room to another, going up and down the three floors of the building, and sorting files and folders in the student council room for about two hours now. Yet, this is the first time I've seen her break a sweat. Not an ordinary girl.

"Those looked worn-out. Why not just throw them away, senpai?" Tamaki asked as he carried two boxes.

"No can do! We'll never know when we'll find one or two good mitts, right? And they probably just need some patching up!" she said as she lifted two boxes and walked off.

"Ah~! How tiring!" sighed the twins as they lazily slumped to a wall.

"Oi, you two! No slacking off! We must be as strong and enduring as commoners! Take Miyori-senpai for example! She's a girl yet she works harder!" Tamaki yelled.

"Hmm…I wonder why Miyori-senpai's so strong," Hikaru asked his twin (or vice versa. I couldn't tell).

"Beats me," replied Kaoru.

"But really, why does Kyouya-senpai get to just sit around and type?" they chorused as they glanced sceptically at Kyouya, who was seated outside the student council room, typing endlessly on his Mac while glancing at some files beside it.

"Since the auditor is sick, senpai was appointed by Miyori-senpai to be the temporary auditor, remember?" Haruhi stated, also carrying a box as she passed them. Tamaki gasped at the sight of his "daughter" doing heavy work.

"I shall relieve you of your burden, my dear daughter! Give me your box!" the blond said in his princely manner.

"You don't need to, senpai. I'm off," the brunette replied flatly as she walked off, leaving Tamaki being stricken with imaginary lightning. Then, Tamaki straightened up.

"But really, why _is _Miyori-senpai so strong?" he asked. I've been wondering about that, too. Then, one of the students, the secretary as I remember, approached Tamaki and the twins.

"That's because Miyori-san has been working hard ever since her first year for her current position. At the time, delinquency and bullying was quite rampant, and the student council couldn't do anything about it. Because the president himself was an oppressor of the weak, as well," he said. Then another, the P.I.O.*, joined in.

""That president belonged to a school gang composed of almost all the male population in school. They nominate and vote for a member every year so their treacherous rule goes on. Miyori-san didn't like the rotten government so she decided to stand up against it and nominated herself for the presidential position. But soon, she realized that if the gang still existed, she won't have a chance of winning."

"And so, she went through vigorous training to change the members of the gang and knock some sense into them. Miyori-san trained herself for all the sports the gang members were in with a goal to let them feel oppressed when they lose in their own game. Day and night, she'd practice soccer, baseball, track and field, swimming, chess, lawn tennis, table tennis, volleyball, basketball, and all other sports found in school, including judo and kendo. And all that while maintaining herself in the top spot in class."  
>"And also managing our class well as the class president up to today."<p>

"We sometimes noticed that she gets tired, but the smile she greets us with every morning never changed. That's why everyone in school respects her so much, even before the elections."

"And that respect grew even more when she succeeded in her mission to change the gang members. They all became her instant devotees once they were defeated, including the ex-president when Miyori-san won the elections."

"But why did she do all those tiring things? Couldn't she just leave them with anybody else?" Hikaru and Kaoru asked.

"She'd always tell us that she feels a certain responsibility for things, especially for the school. Also, she said she wanted to stop the bullying for a dear friend of hers who was always bullied in the past. She'd never tell us who that friend is, though," the secretary replied before walking off with the P.I.O. I knew she was strong, but I never expected her to be _that _strong. She had gone through a lot.

About two hours after lunch, I was about to carry a pile of boxes to some room when Mitsukuni approached me with teary eyes.

"Takashi, I wanna eat cake~!" he said as he wailed.

"Us, too~!" the twins piped in and they wailed together. Miyori was heading to the pile of boxes beside us and heard the ruckus. She heaved out a long sigh in defeat.

"Alright, go get yourselves some food. But make sure you come back, okay?" she said with authority. Then, she glanced at me and and looked back at the twins. "Oh, right. You two keep an eye on Hunny-kun, okay?" The twins nodded vigorously.

"We're off~!" chimed the three as they skipped off. Then, Miyori turned to me with that smile that, for some reason, made me want to smile, as well.

"Hehe, I do hope they'll be careful, especially Hunny-kun, right?" She looked at me with eyes of deep green that seemed to scan mine. "You're worried too, right?" She walked past me to the stock room, then suddenly turned and walked back. "Oh right! Before I forget.." She faced me and, for some reason, performed a dogeza bow.** "It is an honor to be in your presence, successor of the great Morinozuka clan, Morinozuka Takashi-sama!" She spoke in such an uncharacteristic formal tone that it felt kind of awkward, especially when she called me "Takashi-sama". Oh, so now she knows. Somehow, the fact that she's so formal like this made her feel so distant, and for some unknown reason, that fact upset me.

"My father once trained under your father, and afterwards, switched to judo and trained under the Haninozuka clan. It's my honor to be able to meet the heir of the clan that gave my father's kendo skills, which he passed down to me." She then stood up and smiled. "That said, let's get to work!" Her formality had vanished like thin air, and somehow, it relieved me. "Oh, is it okay to still call you Mori-kun?" At that, I nodded and she grinned happily.

"Your dad…" I started, wanting to ask her if her dad ever taught her kendo.

"Oh yeah. He taught me some kendo when I was like five, but later on, he realized that carrying a katana would ruin a girl's femininity. Haha. So that's why he switched to judo to teach it to me." She gave a small giggle before getting some boxes and piling them together. Then it hit me that she's going to attempt to carry three large boxes on her own. I had noticed earlier when she smiled at me that her eyes were somewhat half-lidded and if I look closer, she looks paler now than earlier this morning. Fatigue is attacking her.

"I'll carry these," I said as I lifted the box at the top with one hand. Together, they were light, but fairly heavy for a girl.

"Oh! No, no, no! You don't need to! I can do this myself. Haha," she protested, her smile still bright and lively, but her eyes the opposite. I narrowed my eyes. "I can do this! You'll see!" She lifted those three large boxes in one swift movement, her body uncrouched, and even beamed a smile at me before she walked off. "I'll be alright!" she called back. Her body didn't quiver; her arms firm, and her footing stable. She may be the only girl this strong, but I doubt it. Quietly, I followed her. I have a feeling she's just forcing herself. Is she?

(Miyori's POV)

"I'll be alright!" I called back to Mori-kun, who was staring at me with narrowed eyes, as if he doubts everything I say. Though he had a right to do so. I lied. I wasn't alright. I felt dizzy. My legs felt like giving away, and it took all my remaining stamina to walk steadily and to keep my body from crouching with the weight of the boxes in my quivering arms. All so as not to make myself look weak in front of everyone. Of him.

_"I'll carry those."_

No, I definitely cannot be weak. Not in front of Mori-kun. If I really want to be friends with him, or anyone at that, I shouldn't burden him. I shouldn't depend on anyone, especially him. He's a Morinozuka. He shouldn't be helping mere commoners like me. I closed my eyes tight, trying to keep my head from spinning, and opened them again. I walked to my right to get to the baseball equipment room. Suddenly, my surroundings seemed to swerve to the right and before I knew it, I was falling backward. Everything seemed to swirl. My body felt weightless. _'Am I fainting…?'_ I closed my eyes shut, expecting a cold, hard floor to meet my back any second now. I waited for 10 seconds, but nothing happened. I heard the boxes topple in front of me, but why wasn't I toppling with them? I felt some force pushing me up straight. When I was sure I was stable enough to move, I turned around to see those very familiar dark eyes and matching black hair.

"M-Mori-kun…" was all I could manage to say in my frozen-in-shock-and-fatigued state. No. Not him. Not now.

"Where's the infirmary?" he asked in an urgent tone. A tone that wasn't angry but told me to do as he said.

"I-it's in the second floor…." I said in my unusually weak voice. My eyelids felt as if they want to just stay shut forever. Mori-kun looked around, his eyes searching for something. Suddenly, he grabbed my right wrist and walked me carefully into the baseball equipment room. He dusted a pile of boxes and gripped my shoulders, which made me jump a bit. He dragged me down to sit atop the pile of boxes and again, he looked around the dark room.

"Any lights?" he asked in a steady voice. I point upward to the only light bulb here, and he reached to switch it on, which took no effort since his head almost met the low ceiling. He then went over to the one window of the room and slid it open. He then went out of the room, probably to get the boxes I was supposed to carry.

"No, I'll do tha—" I started but my head suddenly throbbed and it made me fall back to sit on the boxes. He sprinted over with the three boxes in one hand and placed them beside me.

"Don't move."

"But I have to work-!"

"I said don't move." He stared at me with a familiar look. That look that told me "Don't disobey me" and "This is for your sake". Exactly like my father's. My eyes remained widened in shock as he stood up. I felt a big, warm palm on my head. He had just patted me. "Don't force yourself."

"Even if you say that, I can't just depend on others all the time!" I protested. That's what I always believed.

"If you're in a bad position, you can," he said so firmly. Then it hit me. This was the first time I've heard anyone say that to me. That I can depend on others. I looked up to Mori-kun, who did something I've never seen him do. He smiled. He then ran out of the room, probably off to tell others about my predicament. I bit my lower lip, trying to prevent the tears from spilling out. No one's ever said that to me. No one's ever told me that I can depend on others. And most of all, no one's ever said those poignant words to me with a genuine smile. Only Mori-kun did. But still, I troubled him like this.

"Sorry…" I whispered to myself. Then, I remembered something a special person said to me.

_ "In times like these, you should say 'Thank you' instead of 'Sorry'." _Right.

"Thank you, Mori-kun."

(Kyouya's POV)

"Hmm…23 in this column, 11 there….." I murmured to myself as I counted the several bats there were in the baseball equipment and listed them down. I had gone to the very center of the room since the room was quite crowded with boxes and crates. Suddenly, I heard a rumbling of boxes a good distance from where I was standing. I was well away from the mountain of boxes in the room, so it clearly wasn't my doing. A little while later, I heard faint voices. Then, there were footsteps approaching the room. I shouldn't really be curious about trivial things like these, but I might as well go see, since something beneficial to me may be happening. I went to the right side of the room still hidden behind the boxes and there I saw Mori-senpai searching the room. In front of him was a very familiar flock of red hair. _'Miyori-senpai?' _I moved the box directly in front of me a bit, and my theory was proved. It _was _Miyori-senpai.

"Any lights?" Mori-senpai asked and Miyori-senpai raised her right hand, pointing upward. Before I knew it, a weak yellow light flooded the room. I cringed at the sudden light attacking my eyes. It gave me a little headache that when Miyori-senpai and Mori-senpai talked, I couldn't make out what they were saying. A while later, when my brain had finally calmed down, I listened attentively to their discussion.

"Even if you say that, I just can't depend on others all the time!" Miyori-senpai shouted, probably in protest to a statement like "Don't force yourself" or "Don't try to do things on your own".

"If you're in a bad position, you can," Mori-senpai said and did something he very rarely did outside Host Club activities. He smiled at her. Then, he fled out of the room, probably off to get some help. A while later, I heard Miyori-senpai say something like "Sorry", though it was too whispered so I wasn't sure. And after a short pause, she said the words "Thank you, Mori-kun" clearly. Perfect. Our deal yesterday was all about who owed who more, right Miyori-senpai? Now you owe us more. I went back to my previous work and silently counted the number of baseball mitts. I know fully well that eavesdropping is a bad manner, but since I have gained something beneficial, I believe I had just made a good decision there.

_A/N: Oh well…hahaha….I know this is short, but you know me…hahaha…Oh, and those asterisk-ed words!_

_*In case you don't have one in your student council, P.I.O. means Public Informant Officer._

_**Dogeza bow= is an element of Japanese manners by kneeling directly on the ground and bowing to prostrate oneself as touching one's head to the floor. It is translated into English as "prostration" or "kowtow". It is used to show deference to the most highly-revered high-class person, as a deep apology and to express the desire for a favor from said person.  
><em>

_Is all! Thanks for reading! As always, comments, suggestions, and criticisms are most welcome! ^_^_


	7. Chapter 7

_A/N: WOOOOOOOOHHHH! FINALLY SCHOOL IS DRAWING TO A CLOSE AND I'M GRADUATING! So yeah, sorry for keeping you guys waiting! Chapter 7 is here and the next one might be next week. So here we go and I don't own Ouran!  
><em>

Chapter 7- Blue

(Miyori's POV)

A multi-coloured butterfly passed my sight as I walked along an old rusty railroad that stretched for miles and miles. I came to a stop when I saw a pure white pebble on the ground and picked it up with my little hands.

"Daddy, look!" I said with the voice of a child as I turned to my left. Dad was smiling proudly with those stern yet gentle eyes that I haven't seen for so long. The afternoon sunlight beamed on his face and gradually became brighter and brighter.

"Daddy! Daddy!" I cried as I watched him seem to slowly disappear into the bright light.

_Riing! Riing!_

"Daddy!" I called for the last time. My teary eyes were staring wide open at my room's wooden ceiling. It was around 10 in the morning, and today was a free day since it's a weekend. My summer job's only during weekdays. That's why I took the chance and slept in this much from all the fatigue from yesterday. And now I'm here staring at the ceiling from having such an eerie dream. It somehow brought me back to that day when Mom told me over the phone that Dad had died in a car accident.

_Riing! Riing!_

I snapped out of the memory I've always wanted to forget as I finally noticed my ringing phone. I flipped it open to see Rin's name and answered the call.

"Oi, you worthless president! Stop sleeping and get your lazy ass over here! Your dear student council's got a problem with something I don't understand, and they keep pestering me about your whereabouts!" she yelled with her usual annoyed tone. Before I got to object about her calling me worthless and lazy, she had hung up and the student council problem had filled my head. I hurriedly changed into a shirt and jeans and rushed off after seeing Mom was fast asleep in her room. What could be the problem this time, I wonder. As I thought deeply into the possibilities, I suddenly remembered that dream. The last time I dreamt of Dad was the night after his burial, which was the first time I fell asleep ever since his accident. Something must have reminded me of Dad for this to happen, or rather, someone. Right. Morinozuka Takashi.

_"I said don't move!"_ He had that same mix of sternness and concern in his voice, much like Dad's whenever he scolds me for bruising myself after a whole day of playing. He had them, too—the same strict yet gentle eyes that told me to follow what he says because it's for my own good. And those words.

_"If you're in a bad position, you can." _I'll never forget those words.

"Miyori-senpai!" a familiar voice called out to me as I felt a light pull from the hands that gripped my right arm. Finally snapping out, I halted and saw a black car whiz by just mere centimetres in front of me. I looked up to the traffic lights ahead and saw it was still red. I turned to my life saver and smiled.

"What do you think were you doing, senpai? You almost killed yourself there!" Kazumi said with her customary pout as her light brown eyes stared at mine with worry.

"Ahaha, my bad, my bad. I was just thinking too much. You really saved me there!" I replied as I idiotically scratched the back of my head. She just giggled back, being used to my usual behaviour of thinking too much about things. Minato Kazumi is a year behind me and we've been friends ever since a year ago when she came to crying, saying she couldn't find the music club room. She was just naïve first year then, and learning I was the student council president, she just rushed into our student council meeting that afternoon and cried to me like a child. But that was what I've always loved about her. She was straightforward, headstrong, playful, and as pure and innocent as a child. She said and did whatever was in her heart, and I somehow found that enviously lovable.

"So, where ya off to, senpai? Isn't it vacation?" she asked me as we waited for the lights to go green.

"School. And I should be asking you that. Where are _you_ going?"

"I was planning on going to that cake shop you're working in to pay you a little visit, but since you're here, I might as well just tag along then! But why are you going to school in the middle of vacation, senpai?"

"Student council work, remember?" The lights finally went green. "Let's hurry!" I grabbed Kazumi's hand and sprinted off across the street.

"W-wait, slow down, senpai!" Kazumi managed to say between heavy breaths.

"Oh, sorry," I said as I slowed down, remembering my normal pace was a high speed sprint for others.

"Why are we in a hurry again?"

"Rin said the student council's got a problem."

"Oh, okay. Understood! Wait, senpai." I let go of her hand and turned to her as she took off her sandals and slipped on a pair of slippers she took out from the paper bag she was carrying. "Let's go!" A few minutes later, we finally got to the student council room. There was no sight of any members, but the Host Club was there, plus Rin. We were met with sullen faces as they sat there around the room's long table.

"What's the problem? Supplies, money, equipment, what?" No one dared to answer. Then, I saw a smirk play on Kyouya's face as he pushed up his glasses.

"Just kidding," he said, and they all burst out into laughs and guffaws, especially Rin. Even Mori-kun couldn't suppress a giggle, though it lasted too short for anyone to notice.

"You actually fell for it! You _are _an idiot!" Rin jeered between laughs.

"Mou, you guys. And I ran so fast, too," I said as I sighed in defeat and soon joined in the laughter. Soon, the laughs ended and they all stared at the new face I had brought along.

"Oh, and who might this princess be?" spoke Tamaki as he sauntered towards Kazumi while pulling a red rose out of nowhere. "Well, it's an honour to meet such a fair beauty!" he said as he gave the rose to a confused Kazumi and caressed her hands in the process. Suddenly, a fist landed on Tamaki's blond head. Ah, I knew Rin would do this. She could never stand the rosy, lovey-dovey aura Tamaki created with his narcissism. And with that, I presumed Rin has been introduced to the Host Club, probably yesterday.

"Great. Now cut the crap and get out of my way. Stay away and don't harass my friend ever again," Rin scowled as she shoved Tamaki out of Kazumi's sight.

"Yay! Rin-senpai! Long time no see! So, who are all these people?" Kazumi shrilled as she snuggled Rin, who started to introduce Kazumi to the Host Club.

"She could have just let me introduce myself to the new kid and said 'Excuse me' after that…." Tamaki murmured in his emo corner as he drew imaginary circles on the floor.

"That's because you were in Rin-senpai's way," Haruhi stated as-a-matter-of-factly, sending an invisible lightning rod to Tamaki.

"Eh? Rin-senpai actually has such a cute friend, after all?" the twins chorused innocently. Uh-oh.

"What did you mean by that, ha?" Ah, Rin has snapped. The twins yelped as Rin faced them with the eyes of a demon ready to devour them.

"Stop it, Rin. You'll scare the children. Oh, wait. You're a child, too. Go ahead, then," I told her with a smirk as I put my hand over her head, which was at elbow level.

"What did you say, idiot?" She threw her fists angrily at me, which was to no avail since I kept her a good distance away with my arm. My smirk grew wider as I inwardly commented how cute she looks like whenever she's like this. And Rin never likes to be called cute.

"Aren't you Yukito Kazumi?" We stopped bickering and turned to Kyouya, who wrote something on his mysterious notepad thingy.

"Eh? _The _Yukito Kazumi?" Tamaki asked as he stared at a bewildered Kazumi wide-eyed.

"Yeah, she does look like her, right?" Hikaru stated as he turned to Kaoru, who just nodded in reply.

"The Yukito family is closely on par with Tama-chan and Kyou-chan's in wealth and influence, right Takashi?" Hunny chimed as he looked up to Mori-kun, who replied with his usual nod. No wonder the name sounds familiar. Yukito Kazumi is the only daughter and heir of the Yukito business, one of the richest and most powerful business group whose businesses range from resorts and hotels to just about any business you can name. Quite on par with the Suohs and Ootoris, indeed.

"Eh? What? Who's that?" Kazumi asked puzzled and shocked to be compared to a girl that rich.

"What are you all talking about? My friend is MINATO Kazumi, not Yukito. Furthermore, she can't possibly that rich girl. She's lived in the countryside all her life with her grandparents, which explained her naivety towards city life when she first came here with her aunt and uncle. She couldn't act, speak, or eat properly, which is the exact opposite of how a rich girl should be. Her IQ level is also quite average, while rich people are usually very smart, as smart as Kyouya-kun and Haruhi-chan," I explained. But it seemed they still wouldn't budge, especially Kyouya. He stopped writing and took out something from his notepad.

"This picture wouldn't lie," he said as he displayed a picture of Yukito Kazumi. One of the twins took it and held it next to Kazumi, who now has lots of question marks floating above her head.

"They really do look alike!" Tamaki exclaimed. Then, Kazumi turned to see the picture beside her.

"Eh? No we don't. She has weird blonde hair that almost looks white. Mine is brown, see?" Kazumi stated as she held up a lock of her brown hair. "And even though we have the same eye colour, she has such weak-looking eyes that almost looks like she's about to go to sleep. Mine are always wide open! And look, she has no moles on her face, but I have one!" She pointed at the mole under the edge of her left eye.

"You're right," Tamaki and the twins chorused.

"Short, messy hair…" Hikaru started.

"..make-up-less face…" Kaoru added.

"…plain, commoner outfit…"

"…indigenous footwear."

"Definitely not Yukito Kazumi," they both confirmed.

"I-I get it already! Sorry for being so unfashionable, rich city people!" Kazumi said with that pout of hers, which always made me giggle.

"So, what's up? Why did you guys suddenly call me here?" I asked. Rin turned away towards the window with a scowl and…was she blushing? "Did something happen yesterday?"

"Hunny-senpai and Rin-senpai had a kendo duel yesterday, "Haruhi stated. I turned to Rin with a glare. Really, she just has to pick fights even with such a cute person like Hunny-kun. But still, Rin's always hated cute things.

"Really, Rin," I said as I shook my head.

"Hey, it's not my fault! This annoying sugar-high kid knocked me over when I was getting out of the classroom!" she objected.

"I said I was sorry! I was waving goodbye to Hika-chan and Kao-chan, that's why. And I even offered you some cake…" Hunny retorted as he snuggled his Usa-chan like a kid who just broke a vase.

"Well, I don't like cake! I would have preferred your head on a silver plate."  
>"Oi, Rin! Watch your mouth!" I scolded.<p>

"This ain't any of your business!"

"Yes, it is! First of all, you are my classmate. Second, I am this school's student council president and it is my duty to look after the behaviour and welfare of all the students! Now, apologize!"  
>"Che. Sorry's not in my vocabulary."<br>"Ah, whatever! So," I turned to Haruhi. "let me guess. Rin challenged Hunny-kun to a duel and if he lost, he should go get something for Rin as compensation."

"The skull of a national hero in a foreign land," Rin cut in. I just stared at her in disbelief and sighed. Sadistic as always.

"And if Hunny-kun won?"

"Rin-senpai must go to a trip to the amusement park with us!" cheered Tamaki and the twins.

"And since, it's pretty clear that Hunny-kun won, I'm guessing you called me here because I'll be going along too, huh Kyouya-kun?" Kyouya nodded and flipped open his notepad.

"So, when are you free, Miyori-senpai?" he asked me.

"I'm free tomorrow!"

"Wow, that sure sounds fun! Can I go too, senpais? Can I? Can I?" asked Kazumi with her wide eager eyes as she bounced up and down in front of me like a little bunny.

"Aww, of course you can!" I said as I snuggled her and patted her hair. "Right, Kyouya-kun?"

"Of course," he said with a familiar smirk. It was that same smirk he had when he negotiated, or rather blackmailed, me two days ago.

"Are you planning something, Mommy?" Tamaki queried. As expected of Kyouya's best friend. He sensed it, too.

"Indeed I am." Kyouya took out a cardboard box filled with pieces of little rolled-up paper and placed it on the center of the table. "To make our trip more interesting, I suggest each of us draw lots for a ride we have to get on while we're there."  
>"And if we don't ride it?" the twins asked.<p>

"There will be a corresponding punishment ride, which will be far worse than the compulsory ride you picked. Remember, I know all your fears and weaknesses, and I have researched on all the rides and booths of the amusement park we'll be going to." His glasses gave off a demonic glare, which made me gulp in fear. He had probably noticed my fear of heights yesterday when I was asked to get a box from high up the stacks of boxes. I first attempted to get it, but my legs shook in fear and I resorted to asking another person to get it for me. Really, this Kyouya guy can be very scary indeed.

"Alright, everyone! Let's form a line and start with the draw! I'm going first!" I said as I went up in front of the box.

"Oh, and please don't open the paper. Just give it to me and I'll just list it down in my records," Kyouya said.

"Eh? Why?" we all asked, except for Mori-kun and Rin. Rin yawned and probably wanted to get it all over with and Mori-kun just stood there as usual. Then, I remembered yesterday's events. Come to think of it, I haven't thanked him for yesterday. I went over to him with my usual smile.

"Yo!" I said and he acknowledged me with a nod. Then, when his eyes met mine, my head suddenly went blank. I wasn't sure why my heart thumped faster, but it was probably because I was nervous. But why am I suddenly nervous? Is it because I owed him a lot yesterday? Or maybe because I'm again seeing those eyes quite similar to my father's? Or…

"What is it?" he asked me, and I snapped out of my thoughts.

"Ah..er.." I stuttered. Okay, first I get nervous. Next, I'm stuttering. What is happening to me? "Uh, I forgot to thank you for yesterday, so, thanks! Ehehe…" I scratched the back of my head for the second time that time. God, I probably look like an idiot right now.

"You're welcome," was his simple reply. He kept looking at me as if I were a different person right now. Great, now he senses I'm nervous.

"I'm going back, then!" I said with a forced grin and went back to the front of the line.

"…wouldn't it be better if it were a surprise?" was the line I managed to catch from Kyouya's explanation. "I'll just phone you all tonight about what ride you got and the meeting place and time," he told us. I decided to forget what happened just moments ago and went back to my usual attitude.

"Hehe, not bad!" I exclaimed. "Well, I'm going first!" I closed my eyes and picked one tiny paper and handed it to Kyouya. Everyone else followed suit and soon we all headed home. Even as I walked up the path towards our house, I couldn't get my mind off of my behaviour when I talked to Mori-kun. What was the matter with me? I've been talking to different kinds of people all my life and I have never been nervous in doing so. That is, until now. I patted my cheeks and shook my head rapidly. I can't be like that again. That's right. Tomorrow, I'll be my usual self with everyone and with Mori-kun, especially since we'll be in a fun place. Summer has just started, and I have to enjoy it as much as I can.

(Mori's POV)

"I can't wait for tomorrow~!" my ecstatic cousin exclaimed as we walked towards our apartment building. "Today sure was fun, right Takashi?"

"Yeah," I replied. Indeed it was. That little prank they pulled on Miyori even made it hard for me to suppress a little laugh. I've been successfully suppressing laughs and giggles ever since I entered the crazy world of the Host Club, but this was the first time I failed to do so, which was unusual. And speaking of unusual, Miyori didn't seem like herself when she talked to me today. She seemed rather nervous, and I wondered why. I wonder if something happened, or I did something bad to her. Me and Mitsukuni boarded the elevator to our floor and went to our respective rooms.

"Brush your teeth, Mitsukuni," I told him before he shut his door.

"Okay~! Good night, Takashi~!" he replied. I nodded and went into my room. Just after I changed my clothes, my phone rang. It was Kyouya.

"Good evening, Mori-senpai. The rendezvous will be a coffee shop right in front of this store," he told me and I wrote down the store's long name. "Please be there by 7:30 am or so. That would be all. Goodbye then, Mori-senpai." And the call ended. I thought of going to Mitsukuni to make sure he knew about it, but my instincts told me he was now asleep, and it would be a very bad idea to wake him up. Then it came to me that it was my first time to go to a commoner amusement park. Indeed, this would be a very interesting and memorable summer.

(Miyori's POV)

"Miyori, your phone's ringing!" called my Mom from downstairs. No wonder I can't find my phone in my bag. I left it in the kitchen while helping Mom prepare dinner.

"Coming!" I said and rushed down to it. I flipped it open and an unknown number was calling.

"Hello, Miyori-senpai. It's me, Kyouya." It first took me aback that he called me, but then I remembered he said he'd call us tonight for our ride, the meeting place, and the time.

"Ah, Kyouya-kun! How'd you get my number?"

"Rin-senpai gave it to me," he replied.

"So, where do we all meet tomorrow?" He told me about the coffee shop in front of that store that had a very long name and told me to be there at 7:30 am or so. "Okay, then! Thanks! See you guys tomorrow!" I said and the call ended. I grinned as I ran up the stairs to my room. It's been such a long time since I last went to have fun with my friends. I've been very busy with student council work ever since my second year. Finally, I could lay back and have fun even just for a day. Finally, it's starting to feel like summer.

(Kyouya's POV)

"Okay, then! Thanks! See you guys tomorrow!" Miyori said over the phone and I hung up. Finally, the last call is done. I surely owe Hunny-senpai and Rin-senpai a lot, for if it wasn't for them and that duel, this brilliant a plan never would have come to existence. They might think they were just choosing their compulsory rides, but it's actually more than that. I decided that all of us be grouped by pairs and meet in different places before going to the amusement park. To determine the pairings, I made them draw lots for their compulsory rides. The two people that got the same ride go together, and I'll just call them on the actual day to tell them what ride they got. Each pair has a different rendezvous and must go together to the amusement park and ride whatever they got from the draw until all of us meet each other. And luckily, everything went according to plan. Mori-senpai and Miyori-senpai were paired, and the other pairs were Tamaki and Haruhi, Hunny-senpai and Rin-senpai, the Hitachiin twins, and me and Kazumi. I have just finished informing each pair about the rendezvous. I made sure to inform Mori-senpai when I was sure Hunny-senpai was asleep, and told him to go there in a time when Hunny-senpai is still asleep. That way, Mori-senpai won't be given a chance to inform his cousin of his meeting place and the plan will go smoothly. As for Hunny-senpai and Rin-senpai, I'll be calling them around 8 or 9 since it's pretty sure they're both awake by that time. And I decided that I'll separate Hikaru and Kaoru in the last minute. I gave each of them a different place and time back in the school when Hikaru went to get a drink. I was sure the only thing they'll ask each other is if they already knew about the place and time. Naturally, both of them would just say yes and talk about other trivial things afterwards. Being paired with that Kazumi girl can also be a good thing since I'll get the chance to observe her more closely. Indeed she didn't look and act like a girl as rich as Yukito Kazumi, but something about her gave me the feeling that she was lying. That she had a completely different personality, and that there was more to her than just an average commoner girl. Well, I'll just hope everything goes smoothly, especially with Mori-senpai and Miyori-senpai. If Miyori-senpai is thinking she has won against me in blackmailing, then she's dead wrong.

"Just you wait, Miyori-senpai."

_A/N: Comments, suggestions, and complaints are welcomed with open arms! Thanks for reading and review if you want! ^_^_


	8. Chapter 8

_A/N: Finally, I'm graduating! This coming Friday is the day of days! I've been itching to go on to college and get a job so I can be rich and fly off to Japan and live my Japanese dream! Plus, with school cleared out of the way, I'll be able to finish this fic probably this summer! I'm not saying I could, but I'll try to. So, here you go people! And disclaimer: I do not own OHSHC. Is all. ^_^_

Chapter 8- Bluer

(Mori's POV)

7:30 am. I arrived just in time. I breathed in the fresh morning air as I stood outside the appointed meeting place. Normally, I would be in the middle of kendo practice by now, but I guess this is how summer should be—escaping the monotonous flow of daily life. I still don't know if getting here without Mitsukuni was the right choice, though. Just minutes ago, I stood in front of his door, torn between waking him up and going off to the meeting place first. But knowing my cousin's destructive demeanor when waken up in the middle of his slumber, I headed off here without him. For sure, Kyouya would've informed him. It's Kyouya we're talking about. He doesn't easily make mistakes and forgets things. The coffee shop started to open, and the workers started setting up the tables outside the shop. I took a seat in one of them as I continued to wait for the others. This was extremely rare for them to be later than me, especially Tamaki. He would always be the earliest one, usually arriving an hour ahead of time. But 8 minutes have passed and not one Host Club member is here but me.

"Mori-kun!" called a very familiar voice. I turned to see Miyori, who was running with quite a fast speed to my direction. As expected from a national Track and Field champion. "Sorry I'm late!" she said as she halted in front of me.

"No, it's okay," I told her as she sat down the seat next to me. I noted how she dressed quite differently from other girls. She wore a simple and adequately loose white polo shirt and cargo pants and shoes, while girls usually wear fancy dresses or designer jeans and footwear. She also just let her hair hang freely like usual, unlike other girls that always keep their hair in different kinds of hair styles. Maybe this is just how commoner girls dress.

"Mori-kun?" I snapped out of my thoughts as I finally noticed I was staring at her all along. I ignored the abnormally fast beating of my heart, probably due to the shock, and tried as hard as I can to keep a straight face. "Where are the others? It's almost eight and still no sign of them!" I merely shrugged at the question, since I as well don't know what's taking them so long. Suddenly, an unfamiliar ringtone rang and Miyori took out her phone from her sling bag.

"Hello? Kyouya-kun? Where are you guys?" she said over the phone. "Eh? You're already there?" I knew it. They went ahead. It's probably because Tamaki couldn't wait any longer and they all headed off, knowing we seniors would be all right on our own, especially since I have a commoner with me. "Okay then, we're heading there!" She hung up and turned to me with a bashful smile. "Aah, seems we got left behind. We better get going then! We don't want to miss the fun!" She smiled her usual sunny smile as she grabbed a sleeve of my jacket and lead the way, though I wasn't sure where we were headed. As far as I know, the amusement park was the other way.

"We're going to a bus stop. The amusement park's a bit far from here," she said as I saw she was facing me. It was like she read my mind. I never knew I was that easy to read. All my life, the only people who understood my thoughts fully were Mitsukuni and the Host Club. But now, it seems one more person has joined them. Before I knew it, we have arrived at a bus stop. In about 5 minutes, a bus arrived and we got on. I let Miyori sit first and took my place beside her. She looked outside through the window beside her and suddenly turned to me with her bright smile. She was grinning like an excited child awaiting her birthday, and I couldn't help but smile a bit as well. Then, I saw a middle-aged woman had boarded the bus and was having a hard time with her grocery bags. I looked around the bus and there were no seats left. Seeing nobody was willing to help, I stood up, offered her my seat, and carried her bags to it. I crouched a bit as I noticed my head was about to hit the bus' shallow ceiling. I watched as another commoner boarded the bus and grabbed on to those triangular…things hanging on the rail attached to the ceiling. I followed suit and at first struggled to keep my balance when the bus started running, but I managed to get it soon enough.

"My, my, thank you so much, young lad!" spoke the woman. I nodded back and used my host smile to show it was perfectly fine with me. "I just finished grocery shopping for this month and I had to visit an old friend along the way. You really helped me out! Thank you so much!" she told me.

"That's right, Mori-kun! It's great of you to help Kirihara-san!" Miyori cut in. The woman, who was called Kirihara-san, turned to Miyori in shock.

"Oh! Miyori-chan! Sorry I didn't recognize you right away! You've grown so much!" she told Miyori. From the looks of things, they seem to know each other very well.

"Hehe, it's okay, Kirihara-san! So, how's Akaya-kun doing? He's now in his last year of elementary, right?"

"Oh, yes, yes! His grades are going well! How's your mother?"  
>"Oh, she's doing fine. Getting stronger everyday!"<p>

"Well, that's very good to hear! I'll be giving you and your Mom some watermelons next week. Those would be good for her! You're in your last year of high school, right?" After that, I heard nothing else. Why was she only asking about Miyori's mom? What about her dad? And the way they talked about her mother, it was like she was sick or something.

"Oh, Miyori-chan, you know this young man?" Kirihara-san asked as they both faced me.

"Yup! He's a friend of mine!"

"My, my, is he your boyfriend perhaps?" I froze. B-boyfriend?

"Eh? N-no! Haha, we're just friends, really..Haha! Right, Mori-kun?" I nodded as I tried hard to keep a poker face. Well, this is quite awkward. There's no telling how that thought came to Kirihara-san. I've always been used to being mistaken as a brother or a body guard whenever I'm with a girl, but this is the first. Maybe it's because of the fact that we're going somewhere with just the two of us. Right. That's it. But though this event is quite strange, what's stranger is the way I'm acting today. Why did I get embarrassed when Kirihara-san said that? Normally, I would remain totally unaffected by such remarks. And come to think of it, the fact that I'm thinking about it too much right now is even stranger. I decided to divert my attention to the people and the city outside. I looked around until my eyes landed on the driver. Soon I started to ponder on how the driver executes his monotonous job daily without fail and how much he earns every day. Suddenly the bus stopped and Kirihara-san stood up and bid goodbye to Miyori. I guess it's time for her to get down. I helped carry her grocery bags until she got down.

"Thank you again, Mori-kun! Until we meet again!" she said smilingly as she carried her grocery bags and walked off. Miyori probably told her a few things about me. When I turned around to get back on the bus, Miyori was already exiting it.

"This is our stop, too! Now come on, let's go to the amusement park!" Again, she grabbed the sleeve of my jacket and sprinted off to the left. I followed suit, and it didn't take much for me to catch up to her speed. I still have to ask about how she was related to Kirihara-san, but decided to put it off for now and just ask her later. Soon, we arrived. Just as I expected, the amusement park was quite lively and filled mostly with children. But there were surprisingly a lot of rides, and a lot of very thrilling ones, too. There were a lot of other little stalls and booths, varying from gaming and photo booths, food stands, future telling tents, and lots more. There were also peddlers roaming around, selling balloons, sweets, and the like. There was also an unfamiliar band performing on the stage at the center of the park where a handful of people have gathered to watch them.

"Yaah! I'm getting excited!" Miyori exclaimed as she stretched her arms as if she just woke up. "But first, we must find the others! We still don't know what we should ride yet, too." Oh, right. First things first. I also forgot about the fact that Kyouya hadn't informed me of the ride last night. And he said he was going to inform us then. "Where do you think we could find them?" she asked as she turned to me.

"Ice cream," I said, remembering our last trip to that commoner supermarket where we accidentally left a sleeping Kyouya all lost and alone. They all decided to follow Mitsukuni's pleas of ice cream sold at the rooftop. So I guess it's going to be the same. Though there's a possibility that they have all gone their own ways and rode on rides they want to ride, since they've been here for about an hour and a half.

"Oh, I know where the nearest ice cream shop is! Follow me!" Miyori ran off to the right as I followed closely, carefully dodging the many children and people along the way. Suddenly, I remembered. Mitsukuni was still asleep when I left, so he couldn't probably be here. Worse, he might still be there at the meeting place, scared, hungry, and waiting all alone for us. And he probably doesn't have a single clue that we're already here. And even if he knows, finding his way here won't be so easy. Still running closely behind Miyori, I took out my phone and dialled him. Soon, he picked up.

"Mitsukuni, where are you?" I asked over the phone.

"Ah, Takashi! I should be asking you that! I'm now here at the amusement park but I can't see you guys anywhere!" he replied.

"We're here as well, and we're looking for you right now."

"Well we're here at—" I heard some buffering and noises and a "Hurry it up!" statement from the background and guessed Mitsukuni was about to get on a ride or something. "I'll call you later!" And with that, he hung up. I sighed. There's no telling what ride he had gotten on. Then, I noticed Miyori was slowing down and came to a stop. I halted as well, confused about her the sudden stop.

"No use, huh?" she asked me. I shook my head in dismay. She had noticed I was calling Mitsukuni. "I understand this worries you a lot, so I'll try and ask Kyouya-kun." I knew she'd say that. She's understood that I'm very much concerned about my cousin ever since that day when she saved him from kidnappers.

"Kyouya-kun?" she said over the phone. "We're now here at the amusement park. Any idea where Hunny-kun is?" A short while later, the call ended and she turned to me. "He said he's also for him right now, and for the others. Seems they all got separated somehow." I couldn't help but worry more about the fact that Mitsukuni wasn't with them. What if that kidnapping accident happened again and no one's there to save him this time? Or what if he found a cake shop and ran out of money? Or what if he rode a ride and that ride suddenly wrecked and he got into a terrible accident? I tried to calm down by reminding myself that Mitsukuni would've learned much from that incident and would never let his guard down again. But still, I can't help but think of more what-ifs. Suddenly, a warm hand touched my shoulder. It was Miyori's, and she looked at me with her usual vibrant and gentle smile.

"Don't worry. He'll be alright. We both know he's strong. And if there's an emergency, there'll be tons of people around to help him. And he's smart enough to see through con artists and the like, and strong enough to fight them off!" She said it with eyes so sure that it didn't sound like she was being laid-back and careless, but instead, it gave me the impression that she had much faith in Mitsukuni. Suddenly, it dawned on me that I kind of lost faith in him. I was worrying too much about him these days that I have forgotten who Haninozuka Mitsukuni really is. I have forgotten about my cousin's strength, which is stronger than mine. Finally, my mind calmed down and I began to feel a little lighter. Miyori's right. Mitsukuni can handle himself. I'm not letting my guard down, but I won't let it go too overboard again.

"Well, now that you've calmed down, let's go ride our compulsory ride for the meantime! The Water Slide!" Miyori said enthusiastically as she pointed to the ride. I have seen that ride many times, but I've never had the chance to ride it. Well, at the very least, it'll cool me down in the meantime, literally. We went to it, bought our tickets for the ride, and went to line up for our batch's turn.

"Hmm, Kyouya told me that our tickets will be proof that we rode the ride," Miyori said. "The logo of this amusement park will be stamped on our tickets once we've finished the ride and we get to keep them!" As expected of Kyouya. He never fails to research everything and everyone thoroughly. Finally, it was our turn and the operator collected our tickets as we boarded. So far, this would be my 38th commoner first, which makes it hard to believe that summer started three days ago.

(Kyouya's POV)

It's been a while now since Miyori-senpai called me and asked me about Hunny-senpai's whereabouts. I just replied with the lie I've been using to each person that asked me about our whereabouts. I told her I'm searching for everyone else and suggested that she ride her compulsory ride while I search. But I'm not even searching for anybody. For the plan to work out smoothly, Mori-senpai and Miyori-senpai must not meet anybody else until this afternoon when we'll all meet up to gather the proof of riding our compulsory rides. Hopefully, they won't find Hunny-senpai or anybody else for a little longer. But nevertheless, at least Phase 1 is going well. I smirked as I pushed my glasses back up.

"I'm not called an Ootori for nothing, Miyori-senpai."

(Miyori's POV)

"Woooooohh! That was awesome!" I yelled as I plopped down in the bench beside Mori-kun. "Man, I thought I was gonna get very wet there! I never knew they'll be letting us wear those waterproof suits. It's my first time riding that thing anyway." I turned to Mori-kun, who had his usual poker face on, though I could tell from his eyes that he felt relaxed and refreshed. "Is it your first time to ride that too, Mori-kun?" He nodded and started to look off distantly with worry. He can't get Hunny-kun off his mind, after all.

"Why don't you call him?" I said. He turned to me a bit shocked, probably surprised that I read his thoughts. He grabbed his phone and dialled Hunny-kun. Mori-kun's acting a bit strange today, ever since this morning at the coffee shop. He was staring at me so long that it almost made me lose my cool. If it weren't for Kyouya-kun's call, things would've started to get awkward, just like yesterday when I talked to Mori-kun

"_My, my, is he your boyfriend perhaps?" _I shook my head. Why did I suddenly remember that? Really, of all things Kirihara-san would've mistaken Mori-kun for, why did it have to be a boyfriend? Great, now my heart's beating fast again just like when Kirihara-san said that. Assuming I just need a drink because of the heat starting to rise to my cheeks, I stood up in one sudden motion. Mori-kun's probably confused right now, just like yesterday.

"I-I'll go get something to drink," I told him and dashed off instantly. Just what is happening to me? This isn't like me at all! In fact, this is becoming something like a repeat of yesterday. And with the way I am, not only will I fail to enjoy this day, but also Mori-kun. Suddenly, I bumped into someone and halted as I apologized. When I looked around, Mori-kun was already out of sight. How long was I absorbed in my thoughts? I looked around for a vending machine and bought two cans of softdrinks once I found one. After taking a few gulps of the carbonated fizz, I headed back to where Mori-kun was. I've now calmed down, but it seems Mori-kun hasn't. In fact, he seemed ten times more worried now.

"What happened?" I asked him.

"Mitsukuni's not answering. Either his phone's battery went empty or he's in serious trouble right now," he replied. I instantly phoned Kyouya-kun and Kazumi-chan, but not one of them picked up. I also phoned Rin, but then I remembered that she never brings her phone with her. There was no one we could ask for some help in finding Hunny-kun, and Mori-kun is dead worried. Ah, that's right!

"Mori-kun, I have an idea! Why don't we go to all the booths and rides and ask around if they've seen Hunny-kun? If we do it fast, we may be able to find him!" I said as I forcefully made my voice lively to lighten Mori-kun's burden. To my surprise, he nodded and we started off immediately. We went to all the major rides first, and asked the operators if they've seen Hunny-kun, describing him over and over again, but all we get is a no. Next, we went to the stalls and booths to find him, but still no Hunny-kun. I checked the time on my watch and it was already 11:30.

"Mori-kun, aren't you hungry yet?" I asked him as we went to sit on a bench. I can tell he's still too worried to even think about eating right now, though. "Mori-kun, skipping meals is bad, you know. I understand you're worried. In fact, I'm as worried as you are. But that doesn't mean you should damage yourself."

"Go. I'll look for Mitsukuni in the meantime," he told me as he stood up and started heading off somewhere.

"But what about you?" I said as I caught up to him. All of a sudden, he faced me with a look I never imagined would be on his face. Anger.

"I don't care what happens to me! I'm more worried about Mitsukuni right now so if you aren't worried, then go eat by yourself!" he told me with a low but scary voice. Tears started to form in my eyes. I didn't understand what I felt at the moment. I was scared, sad, and angry all at the same time. He didn't understand.

"I'm telling you that not because I'm not worried about Hunny-kun, but because I'm worried about you, too!" I yelled as my tears fell without me noticing. I wiped them away and looked up to him but suddenly he disappeared. I looked around confused until I looked down. He was bowing. Dogeza bowing.

"I'm sorry, Miyori. I take back all that I said," he said loud enough for just me to hear. "I will now agree to your suggestion of eating lunch first before finding Mitsukuni." I smiled. He understood so quickly.

"Get up, silly! A Morinozuka is not supposed to be Dogeza bowing for a commoner!" I said with a giggle as I grabbed his wrist and pulled him up. I noticed a lot of people have gathered around us, and instantly thought about what kind of misunderstandings they're all having in their heads right now. "Ahaha, there's nothing to see here, everyone! He's just sorry for, uh…forgetting his money at home! Yeah! Hahahaha!" I pushed through the crowd and pulled him along as I headed for the nearest fast food store, inwardly commenting how I'll never forget about this.

(Mori's POV)

"Idiot! You really caused a commotion back there!" Miyori yelled as we sat eating in front of each other in the fast food store. "Don't you ever do that again, okay?" She laughed as I just nodded. Indeed, what I did there was quite foolish for a Morinozuka. But I don't regret it one bit. It was just right for me to properly apologize to her. I mean, I've owed her a lot ever since she rescued my cousin, so I have absolutely no right to get mad at her, especially since she was just being concerned about me. I thought and thought of a way to make it up to her, until finally I got it.

"Miyori, is there a ride you'd like to get on?" I asked her. She almost choked on her drink as she turned to me wide-eyed. Is it that hard to imagine me saying these kinds of lines? After a few minutes, she grinned widely and her eyes sparkled.

"Really? Can I?" she asked excitedly and I nodded. "With you?" I nodded again. "But we still have to find Hunny-kun! Is it really okay?" Again, I nodded and as soon as we finished eating, she grabbed my hand and dashed out of the store, dragging me along. Acting all mature like that, but she's still just a kid, after all. She first suggested the roller coaster, and soon enough, we had ridden almost all the rides in the park. It was clear she was having fun, but surprisingly, I was having fun as well.

"Wow, that was fun!" she exclaimed as we walked along a line of stores selling all kinds of stuff. Suddenly, she halted in front of a sports store as she stood agape at a sports shoe on display. "That's the shoe I've been looking for!" she said and dragged me into the shop with her. But just as she was about to get it, another hand reached for it as well.

"Hey, I saw it first. Move!" said a woman who was about 20 and had a very toned body. From the looks of it, she's quite an athlete, too.

"But you just entered!" Miyori replied.

"Whatever. I'm taking this shoe. Besides, you and your limpy legs don't even deserve them." Miyori looked infuriated.

"Yours look limpier than mine, you know," Miyori said with a wide smirk. Now the woman was enraged.

"What did you just say?"

"Prove it then. That you're stronger than me."

"You probably don't know who I am, don't you? I'm a regional Track and Field champion." Yeah, and Miyori's a national champion. Nice try.

"I don't care. Let's have a race now, then."

"Okay." And so, they dashed off and vanished. I ran as well to catch up to them. Well, this will be interesting.

_A/N: Comments, suggestions, and complaints are accepted! Thanks for reading and review if you want! ^_^_


	9. Chapter 9

_A/N: Tadaima! Gomen, I got busy becoming a "teacher" for Vacation Bible School..This chapter would've been updated earlier..gomene..And thank you for waiting, especially to Escape to Ouran-san for telling me that…arigato gosaimasu! And to grayhippo-san or Buttercup-san for actually PM-ing me! Arigato gosaimasu! And just some stuff I wanna change. That girl that just challenged Miyori, she's now a year younger than Miyori. And Kazumi is now 2 years behind Miyori, which makes her a first year like Haruhi and the twins. And that's about it so, here you go! ^_^_

_Disclaimer: We all know who owns Ouran, and it's definitely not me._

Chapter 9- Bluest

(Haruhi's POV)

"Noo! I failed again!" shrieked Tamaki-senpai as he watched a small teddy bear fall from the clutches of metal claws. I sighed. He's been at that game for almost an hour now, and this is his 21st try already. How very naïve.

"No one could ever get something from that thing, senpai. Especially not you," I told him bluntly, which sent him to his emo corner once again. It's the truth anyway. Looking for something interesting, I turned to my right and saw a familiar bunch of red hair in the midst of the crowd.

"There you guys are! I was looking all over for you!" called Kaoru as he ran towards us. Well, it took all of us quite a long time to assemble. It's about a quarter to two by now, which means it took us about 4 to 5 hours of searching for each other. Now we're almost complete. Only Mori-senpai and Miyori-senpai left. Hunny-senpai's been worried and frantic about the absence of his cousin, but since we all met up, he's gotten quite calmer. But he's still looking around once in a while, hopes quite high about spotting Mori-senpai somewhere in the crowd. Suddenly, Hunny-senpai's eyes lit up.

"Takashi!" he shouted in all excitement, his huge smile reaching his ears. Indeed, it was Mori-senpai, with Miyori-senpai walking alongside him. But his voice didn't reach him because of the crowd and our distance from them.

"Hmm, they're getting along quite well," Kyouya-senpai commented, which seemed to peak the twins' interests, as well as Tamaki-senpai's. With them grinning like that and looking at each other knowingly, I could somehow read what they were thinking at the moment. My, my.

"Let's go take a peek at the series of events, shall we?" Tamaki-senpai said schemingly, and before I knew it, we were inside the sports shop the two senpais just entered. Seriously, I have to remind myself why I'm doing this, but oh well, it's summer anyway. I expected Hunny-senpai to oppose to this since all he probably wants right now is to be with his cousin after more than half a day of being separated, but it seems he's just as interested about what's going on between his cousin and Miyori-senpai. If there is something going on, that is. We hid behind shelves while still close enough to hear them. Miyori-senpai went to grab a shoe on display when suddenly, a girl about my age or a year older entered the shop and with no hesitation, grabbed at the shoe Miyori-senpai was about to get.

"Hey, I saw it first. Move!" the dark-haired girl said. One can simply guess by her well-toned body that she was an athlete like Miyori-senpai. She's quite a troublemaker, though.

"But you just entered!" Miyori-senpai protested.

"Whatever. I'm taking this shoe. Besides, you and your limpy legs don't even deserve them." Uh-oh. Here comes the series of insults.

"Yours look limpier than mine, you know." Miyori-senpai was smirking now. She was right. Miyori-senpai's legs looked stronger to me.

"What did you just say?"

"Prove it then. That you're stronger than me."

"You probably don't know who I am, don't you? I'm a regional Track and Field champion." It seems someone doesn't know their place here. She seriously doesn't know that she's facing a Nationals champion right now? Tsk, tsk, tsk.

"I don't care. Let's have a race now, then."

"Challenge accepted." And off they all went, including Mori-senpai.

"Quickly! We must not lose sight of them!" Tamaki-senpai exclaimed as he led us. Soon enough, the faster ones in the group overtook him, which were Hunny-senpai and Rin-senpai. Rin-senpai must be thinking along the lines of "I'm not gonna lose again!" right now, seeing how she eyed Hunny-senpai with much killing intent. Scary. The three that went off before us were so fast that right now, the only thing that served as our lead was Mori-senpai's head. Thank goodness he's tall.

"Hunny-senpai," Kyouya-senpai spoke as we ran. "It's best you call Mori-senpai. Tell him you're with us eating cakes and riding more rides afterwards to avoid any suspicions on us. And tell him he can do whatever he wants at the moment." Hmm, great plan he got there. Hunny-senpai did what he was told, maintaining such a steady voice that it didn't sound like he was running at all. As expected of the strongest martial artist. So we ran and ran after them until we reached a running track. I was taken aback, never knowing that this place actually existed. There were several people also running around and just sitting on the benches surrounding the huge track. These benches were shaded by cherry blossom trees also surrounding the track. Miyori-senpai and that girl were already in their places when suddenly, Miyori-senpai turned around to Mori-senpai. She was looking at our direction so we quickly hid in some bushes near an empty bench. Miyori-senpai waved at Mori-senpai, who was looking for her.

"Sorry but can we have a little match?" she shouted and Mori-senpai just nodded in reply. She shouted back a "Thanks" as she went back to her place. Her challenger was drenched in sweat and seemed as tired as we are, but she looked like she just woke up and hasn't even moved a muscle yet. It seems they had asked a random runner to serve as their coach. As soon as that guy said go, they dashed off. Soon, we observed that the brat was leading quite a huge gap.

"Oi oi, this is bad. It looks like Miyori-senpai's gonna lose," Hikaru whispered to his twin while the both of them and Tamaki-senpai looked on worriedly.

"Wait and see," Rin-senpai replied to them, watching on with eyes as knowing and as calculating as Kyouya-senpai's and Kazumi's were at the moment. When I turned back to the race, I couldn't help but gasp. Miyori-senpai was already leading! And I took my eyes off her like, what, 25 seconds or so? There was such a huge gap between her and the brat that when the brat reached the finish line, Miyori-senpai was already seated on the ground, resting from the short-lived battle. Wow. So this is the true power of _the _Furisaki Miyori. And it seems that girl has just realized this, seeing she's already bowing and saying sorry over and over. But Miyori-senpai just laid her hand on the girl's shoulder, flashed her a smile, and told her something that left the girl very determined and happy at the same time. Tamaki-senpai was about to shout in amazement, but thankfully, the twins held him back and covered his mouth.

"That just now was Miyori-senpai's sure-win technique. She lets her opponent run as fast as she can first to measure her speed and when the enemy seems approaching her limit, Miyori-senpai then uses her full speed to overtake towards the finish line," Kazumi said proudly with her voice audibly toned down. "And the best thing is, no matter what level her opponent is, she always uses her full speed. She never lets her guard down." I agree it's quite an effective technique. And only the really fast runners can pull off that technique without fail, which means she's one of them.

"Something's wrong," Rin-senpai said as we watched Miyori-senpai walk to where Mori-senpai was. Indeed she looked fine at first, but after the first 10 steps, she cringed and kneeled to the ground in pain upon stepping with her left foot. Mori-senpai went to her in a flash, flung her left shoulder over his broad ones, and helped her up. Miyori-senpai protested a bit, but as soon as Mori-senpai held her hip to support her more, she was instantly silenced and, she's blushing? My, my. Quite the romanticist Mori-senpai is. No wonder he's a member of the Host Club now.

"Ah, indeed Mori-senpai has learned a lot from me! Thus is the charm of a King, which I have managed to pass on to my members!" Tamaki-senpai proclaimed. Ah, here we go again.

"Mori-senpai's more romantic than you, you know," I told him and immediately, an imaginary bolt of lightning struck him.

"M-my daughter, just what did you mean by that..?" he said with overflowing tears and a tone as if he was dying or something. What? Was it supposed to mean something else?

"It's exactly as I said," I replied, which sent him (once again) to his emo corner. The twins snickered evilly beside him as they watched his demise, which I had no idea about.

"Mwahahaha! Just this is a year's worth of blackmail already. Just you wait, Miyori…" Rin-senpai whispered and laughed almost the same laugh as the twins'. Hunny-senpai watched the events unfolding with attentive eyes as well as Kazumi, and Kyouya-senpai was, as usual, writing stuff in that mysterious notepad thingy. When I looked back, Miyori-senpai was already seated on the bench near us. Good, we can hear them perfectly.

"Sorry for the trouble," Miyori-senpai said.

"You forget too quickly, don't you?" Mori-senpai answered as he knelt over her injured foot to examine it. A sprain, perhaps? "How did you sprain it?" Wait, what did Miyori-senpai forget?

"Ehehe, it seems I lost my feet's timing when I decided to use my full speed back there, so it got kind of screwed up," she replied as she scratched the back of her head. "And, thanks." She smiled, and surprisingly, Mori-senpai smiled back. Well that's rare. The only times I've ever seen him smile are Host Club activity times and when he's with Hunny-senpai. Miyori-senpai looked up all of a sudden, as if remembering something. "Wait, aren't you going to look for Hunny-kun?"

"Let's get this healed first," was his reply. Wow, things are starting to look like a scene from a romantic movie or something.

"Eh, but—"

"He called a while ago and told me he was now eating cake with Rin and have found everyone a while earlier." Rin-senpai immediately gave Hunny-senpai a death glare, but before she could burst into a fit, Tamaki-senpai and the twins held her back with all their strength. Phew, our cover was almost blown there.

"Why did you tell him that, Hunny-senpai?" I asked, recalling that piece of information wasn't in Kyouya-senpai's orders.

"Tehehe, I just wanted to see Rin-chan's reaction. She's very funny when she's all pissed off~!" he said sweetly with that innocent face while huggling his Usa-chan. F-funny? He's calling Rin-senpai's anger _funny? _And didn't she hate it when someone calls her Rin-chan? I sweat-dropped as Rin-senpai screamed her violent retorts, which were made muffled and almost inaudible by Tamaki-senpai's hand covering her mouth.

"With Rin?" Miyori-senpai exclaimed in disbelief. Indeed, that would be quite an unusual scene. Rin-senpai had seemed to calm down, realizing the situation, so they let her go. She just muttered her complaints to herself for the moment.

"Yes. He also told me I could do anything I want at the moment since he's still going to ride everything else with everyone," Mori-senpai replied.

"And he's alright being with Rin? She can be such a kill-joy. And a sadist. And uncooperative. And lazy. And hates stuffed toys and cake." Nope. I think Rin-senpai isn't like that at all.

"Mitsukuni doesn't think so." The moment those words escaped from him, we all turned to Hunny-senpai in shock. "To him, she's the exact opposite." He was blushing deep red while staring at Mori-senpai, and so was Rin-senpai. In fact, they both seemed frozen in embarrassment. My, my, it seems something else is happening here. Miyori-senpai grinned widely with knowing eyes.

"Haha! Of course I know that!" she chuckled proudly. "She's my best friend, after all!" Well it would've been weird if she didn't know everything about Rin-senpai. But Hunny-senpai knowing that in such a short time, now that's something. No wonder he doesn't fear Rin-senpai at all.

"How long have you been friends with Rin?" Well this is quite unusual of Mori-senpai. Usually, he'd never start a conversation. But now he is, which seemed to take Miyori-senpai aback.

"Ever since we were kids. But we grew much closer since the last year of middle school. She used to be bullied a lot back then. Remember that 'Student Council gang'? They also ran the student council back then, and it was hard to fight back because of the members' family influence and wealth. I don't even know why they bullied Rin back then. She was kind, meek, gentle, and always considerate and helpful of others. Sure she doesn't get things right sometimes, but isn't committing mistakes part of being human? " Guess that's just how bullies are. They oppress those that seem weak in their sight, with a reason or not. "But one day, they took it too far and I had to do something since nobody else was doing anything. So I fought them, and I didn't regret a thing about it. At the very least, that taught Rin to stand up for herself and change, though now I'm not so sure if it's for the better or worse. Because academically speaking, she got pretty much worse." Miyori-senpai giggled while we all looked at her confused.

"Why?" Mori-senpai asked.

"She used to this very smart, responsible and diligent straight-A's student. But it seems along with her change in attitude, her attitude towards studies got worse as well. But at least, from that incident, not only Rin changed, but I did as well. A bit. From her, I learned to lay back sometimes and ask some help from others, especially her. I've also learned from her that if someone helps me out from trouble, I shouldn't apologize but instead, say thank you. Though it seems this past year I've totally forgot all about them. But then you guys came and reminded me of her words, so thanks." Their conversation went on about someone called Kirihara-san being her old family friend and I turned to look at Rin-senpai. But she wasn't there, and so was Hunny-senpai.

"Huh? Where's Hunny-senpai and Rin-senpai?" I asked Kyouya, who was now lying back on the tree right behind me.

"Rin-senpai ran off, so Hunny-senpai went and searched for her. And these three chose to leave them be," he said as he glanced at the twins and Tamaki-senpai, who were listening intently on the two conversing people. Then I heard something that caught my attention.

"Your mom…is she sick or something?" Mori-senpai asked. How did he come to that conclusion?

"Ah….she…" was all Miyori-senpai could say. She looked down with the sadness in her eyes just as much as mine when my Mom died. Wait, don't tell me her Mom died, too?

"You don't have to answer it. I'm sorry I asked," he said, seeing he never should have asked such a question. But Miyori-senpai just flashed a smile back at him. It was clearly a fake one, though.

"No, it's okay. Two years ago, my Mom was diagnosed with breast cancer." Phew, I thought she was going to say her Mom died like mine. But having cancer still kind of pars with death, especially if her mother's in the most critical stage already. "She has just finished all the required chemotherapy sessions earlier this year, and she's now in the middle of recovery." Thank goodness she is. I don't want anybody else to feel the pain of losing a mother, especially not one of my newly-found friends. "All she has to suffer now are the chemo's side effects and the maintenance medicine. But at least the cancer's gone now!" She again flashed a fake smile, which said things were still not that fine.

"What about your dad?" Mori-senpai asked again. And just like when he asked her about her mother, Miyori-senpai's expression instantly changed to sadness, though now it's somewhat sadder.

"He…died a year ago in a car crash." We were all left in shock. Come to think of it, she's having a harder time than me. Though it's true that we both lost a parent, my dad is at least in good shape while her mother is not. And it's pretty clear she's an only child, since she works so hard and all. I've heard from the student council members that she doesn't have just one summer job, but usually 2 or 3; one in the morning, one in the afternoon, and one at night. Only this year has she decided to have just one. And now I know why. "It was a year ago, just after Mom's second-to-the-last chemo session. Dad had went to get a gift to congratulate her, as he did with every ending of a session. But that gift never reached her, for it got destroyed with the accident, along with Dad. The driver of the other car was in a fatal situation but managed to make it out alive. But Dad didn't." Miyori-senpai looked like she was about to break down and cry, but she forced herself to look up. And as if remembering her Dad is right up there in heaven watching over her, she smiled genuinely, which seemed to relieve Mori-senpai. "But I've gotten over it now! Well, at least enough for me not to cry anymore when I remember. So you don't have to worry about making me cry because of asking about it!" She giggled and poked Mori-senpai's forehead lightly. Mori-senpai just looked at her baffled, probably wondering why she somehow read what he was thinking. "It shows in your eyes." She grinned childishly as she looked up again. I did the same thing and just noticed the gray clouds that formed above us. Just then, I felt a drop of water fall on my head, and several others followed. I looked around me and saw that Hunny-senpai and Rin-senpai were back.

"Ah, Takashi is giving her a piggy back ride~!" exclaimed Hunny-senpai as he pointed at the two running off towards a small waiting distance a small distance away.

"Hurry! Let's follow behind them before they get there and notice us!" Tamaki-senpai said as he put his jacket over my head, which took me aback a bit.

"Umm, thanks senpai," I told him as I ran. He didn't seem to hear, though. We all got there successfully before the two, running behind bushes and trees we passed to not lose our cover. We all slumped down to the damp ground and leaned back on the wooden back of the waiting shed.

"Man, we can't understand what they're saying now because of the rain," Hikaru groaned.

"And because of this wall," said Kaoru. Yup, all we hear are random mumbling and stuff.

"Hmm, I think they're talking about Takashi's family now," Hunny-senpai said as he pressed his ear hard on the wall. Meh, we already know about those stuff.

"The get-to-know-each-other phase, huh?" Kyouya-senpai stated. Wow, now it's really starting to look like a romantic movie or story.

"Aww, how cute~!" Kazumi, Hunny-senpai, Tamaki-senpai and the twins exclaimed. I decided to listen to the conversation and did what Hunny-senpai did. If I'm not wrong, Miyori-senpai's talking ecstatically about a pair of running shoes that she says she's been waiting for a long time. Well, nothing interesting to hear. But at least they're conversing pretty well, especially since it's Mori-senpai she's talking to. Normally, people don't like it when the person their talking to doesn't respond much. But Miyori-senpai is still talking to him energetically. Indeed, a person is made to fill another one's insufficiencies. At that moment, the rain suddenly stopped. Great, the weather's trolling again. As I stood up, I saw the two walk off to the right, Miyori-senpai still "piggy-back-riding" Mori-senpai. They headed opposite to where the amusement park is, so I guess they're going somewhere else. But where?

"Come now, everyone! It seems they are not headed for the amusement park, so we must follow them and see where this dark knight is taking his princess!" Tamaki-senpai said gallantly. Really, when will he stop with those obnoxious lines of his? We walked along the two, of course covered by trees, benches, buildings, stalls, parked cars, and all other stuff there are. This continued until we reached the nearest hospital. Wait, could this be about Miyori-senpai's foot? We followed them as Miyori-senpai was seated and a nurse came over to check on her ankle. No doubt about it now. It might have become worse than a sprain, after all. We were seated on a bench near them, our backs facing them, and soon enough, Miyori-senpai was sent to the emergency room once a doctor came. We stood behind the door to eavesdrop on their conversations. It seems Miyori-senpai's ankle got twisted, but in a short while, the doctor had already fixed it and told her to let it rest about 5 minutes or so.

"Okay, we have to be there at the amusement park around that time. Let's set off!" said Tamaki-senpai as quietly as he could. We all rushed out of the hospital and hurried to the amusement park, which was a fair distance away. I checked the time on my phone once in a while and we got to the park barely after 5 minutes.

"Just…how many times…have we ran…today?" Hikaru said between laboured breaths as he and Kaoru slumped on a bench.

"I…have no…idea…" his twin answered, also in the same state as his brother. I also sat down next to them, finally feeling how tired my feet were up to now.

"…We'll be waiting for you, senpai. Goodbye, then," Kyouya-senpai said over the phone then faced us. "I've already informed them of our current location. Now, let's just stay here and wait for them, Tamaki." He turned to Tamaki-senpai and just then noticed that Tamaki-senpai has already gone off to a cotton candy seller.

"Kazumi went that way," Rin-senpai said apathetically as she turned to the left. Kazumi-chan had gone off to a Russian Roulette booth and it seems she has already participated in the current game. I sweat-dropped as I noticed the temperature around Kyouya-senpai steadily dropped to zero. Uh-oh, they made the Shadow King angry again. Really, these two can never stay put, can they? I sighed. I hope it won't be a long wait.

(Miyori's POV)

"Ah! Man, does it feel great to be on the ground again!" I exclaimed as I walked towards the amusement park with Mori-kun. "Thanks a lot for helping me out there, and for paying the hospital bills," I told him bashfully. "Are you sure you don't want anything in exchange?"

"Yeah," came his usual monotonous reply. Then he suddenly stopped in his tracks and looked up as if he just remembered something.

"What is it?" I asked him.

"The shoes."

"Nah, no need to think about that! Someone's probably bought it by now, so I'll just wait for the next release!" I grinned widely as I marched along the concrete streets. So much has happened today, I don't even know where to start. But one thing's for sure. I've gotten tons more comfortable around Mori-kun. It actually feels as if we've been friends since childhood, just like Rin and me. Kyouya-kun just called and told me where they were and Hunny-kun was safe and sound with them. They were now waiting for us there. Well, things went better than expected. As soon as we got there, Mori-kun was met with an ecstatic Hunny-kun with arms open ready to hug him, and I was met with a foot coming straight to my face. Ah, Rin's usual greetings. I blocked the attack with my right hand, pushing her away at the same time. As expected, she landed with no problem.

"You bastard! How dare you make me wait for so long!" Rin yelled.

"Well you know what? I'm not even sorry," I teased her with a huge smirk plastered on my face.

"Stop fighting now, you two~! Kyou-chan will get angrier~!" Hunny-kun told us and immediately, we stopped our little brawl as we noticed a dark aura coming from Kyouya-kun. We all handed over our tickets and it seems all of us managed to ride our designated rides. I looked at the time on my wristwatch and saw that it was already 5:59 pm. Soon enough, a guard went around carrying a megaphone.

"Everyone please exit the park now. We will be closing in a few moments. I repeat, please exit the park now. We will be closing in a few moments," the guard announced through his megaphone.

"Man, and I wanted to ride more rides, too," I said as we exited the park.

"Eh? Where have you and Mori-senpai been if you haven't been riding rides, senpai?" Haruhi-chan asked and I sweat-dropped. Come on, brain! Think of an excuse, quick!

"Uh…Mori-kun and I…went around the park eating!" Yeah, sure. Eating.

"Why?" All of them (except Mori-kun, Rin, and Kyouya-kun) asked in unison. Really, stop with all the follow-up questions!

"Because….I was really really REALLY hungry!"

"Okay." Phew! Thank goodness they bit it.

"Well then, I'll be seeing you guys bright and early in school tomorrow, okay?"

"But senpai, we're still too tired~!" the twins moaned.

"I know where you two live at the moment, you know. If you aren't there when I get there, I'll drag you two to school!"

"That's right! No slacking off!" Kazumi-chan told them.

"Easy for you to say," one of the twins said.

"You won't be working," the other one continued.

"Of course I am! I always help Miyori-senpai out each year! That's why you two shouldn't slack off!"

"Aww, how sweet of you, Kazumi-chan~!" I told her as I patted her head.

"Well, good luck with that. I don't care if I've got summer school. At least I ain't working for you, stupid president," Rin said, which managed to get on my nerves.

"Hey, Rin! What did you just say?"

"Rin-chan's so mean~!" Hunny-senpai stated, which made Rin turn and give him a death glare.

"I told you not to call me that!" she yelled.

"Oh well, I've got more stuff to do so, I'm off! Be early, okay?" I called to all of them as I started walking home and they all reciprocated with "Bye's" and "Take care's". As I passed Mori-kun, I flashed him a smile and said, "See ya!" As expected, he just nodded, but with a smile on his face. I ran home with a huge grin on my face. They say what starts great ends great. And I'm already loving this summer when it has just started. I have a feeling I'm going to love it more.

"No need to worry about me anymore, Dad. I'm doing perfectly fine. All thanks to my friends," I said as I looked up at the star-spangled sky and smiled. I don't know what I did to receive this much happiness, but I guess I kind of owe it all to my friends, especially my new-found ones. And because of them, I remembered the fact that my Dad is still with me, watching over me always, up until now. And most of all, because of them, or more specifically Mori-kun, I remembered a very important word that I've somehow forgotten to say. A word more important than sorry.

"Thanks."

_A/N: So yeah, I tried out somebody else's POV, so if ever you found Haruhi OOC, I deeply apologize for it. And if the outcome of my hiatus didn't meet your expectations, then I deeply apologize again. But I gave it my best so I don't regret a thing. Haha. So thank you so much for reading. Review if you want! Comments, suggestions, flames, complaints, and anything else are highly accepted and appreciated. THANK YOU! ^_^_


	10. Chapter 10

_A/N: Chappy 10 here…yeah…_

_Disclaimer: My name is not Bisco Hatori, so I don't own Ouran._

Chapter 10- Green

(Miyori's POV)

Days went by until they turned into weeks. And those weeks soon turned into a month. And soon enough, with the Host Club's help, student council work was almost finished. There were only a bunch of paper work left, but other than that, everything else was as good as finished.

"You did great today, everyone!" I told them as the rest of the student council and the Host Club cheered and clapped their hands. "Since things are just about finished, tomorrow will be the last day of work, so keep up the hard work, okay?" As usual, we were all assembled after working in the student council room for some snacks and rest before going home. Sometimes, Kazumi-chan bakes us some cookies and even cake, to Hunny-kun's delight. But today, I brought some madeleines from the cake shop I'm working in. They were given by our kind and youthful manager as an extra pay every time pay day came.

"Yay! Now we can enjoy summer like we want it!" the twins and Tamaki-kun cheered. I chuckled. Well, I guess they deserve it. They did work hard, now didn't they? I took another madeleine and noticed there were still a lot of them left. Well, that's rare. Usually, Hunny-kun would've eaten them all by now. I couldn't even get seconds because of him. I looked around the room, but there was no sign of him. I went over to Mori-kun, who was unusually seated in the midst of my lively co-members, to my astonishment. Usually, he'd be sitting somewhere secluded.

"Eh? You're getting along quite well," I told them with a smile.

"Of course, President! He's actually talking and responding with more words now!" beamed my auditor, Retsuro.

"That's great! Keep it up, Mori-kun!" I thrust a thumbs-up at him and he nodded.

"Yeah," he said.

"So, where's Hunny-kun?"

"Rin's classroom." Wait, what? What's he doing there?

"Eh? Why?"

"He said he'll wait for Rin then take her to eat with us."

"Eh, so they're good friends now, huh? So, does he like her?" I pried, giggling at the thought. It would be so much fun teasing Rin about this.

"It seems so."

"I knew it! Aww, this is so adorable!"

"Yeah." And speak of the devil. Hunny-kun ran into the room, dragging along a tired Rin.

"Oi, sugar-high kid, I told you to let me go!" Rin said roughly as he dealt him a death glare. Hmm, what's this? She's blushing? Hunny-kun just beamed her a smile and went over to the table where the madeleines were, still dragging Rin. He took one and handed it to Rin, and in about 5 seconds or so, he had already devoured all of them. Whoa.

"Yay~! Thank you for the food~!" he chimed.

"Oi, don't go saying something like that when you just ate all of them!" Rin scolded him, her dark aura shrouding the room, to which Hunny-kun was unaffected.

"But I got really hungry while waiting for you~!"

"Who told you to wait for me, anyway?"

"I did~!"

"Well, screw that! I wanted to eat more of this stuff and you go eat them all up!"

"Okay, okay~! I'm sorry~!"

"Your face ain't even apologetic! You expect me to accept that half-assed apology?" Noticing she was getting quite noisy, I wrapped my left arm around Rin's neck and punched her head.

"Okay now, quiet down, little kitty," I teased.

"You bastard, what was that about? And who're you calling little kitty?" she gnarled.

"Rin-chan looks so cute when she's angry~!" Hunny-kun suddenly said, which instantly silenced Rin and made her blush.

"W-who are you calling cute, you annoying plush toy addict!" she finally managed to say. I giggled. They would make such a cute couple, indeed. Especially since they have just about the same height. All of a sudden, Tamaki-kun had climbed up on the table of the SC (student council) room.

"Everyone, I just thought of something fun to do after we're done with SC work!" he proclaimed. What could it be this time? "I call it, 'Ultimate House Visit Escapade!'" He just never fails to come up with stuff to do, huh? First, there was the "All-Out Commoner Experience", which the Host Club is doing now, and here comes this escapade thingy.

"So, what are we supposed to be doing in that 'escapade'?" I asked.

"Simple! We visit the house of each member of the SC and the Host Club for the rest of the summer! Oh, and let's also include Kazumi-chan and Rin-senpai!" Hmm, I kinda like the sound of that.

"Woho, that sounds cool! Let's do it!" one of the twins said. Everyone else seemed to have the same opinion.

"Let's do it, then! As the president of the SC club, I approve of the notion!" I stated and my co-members cheered. "Okay, so whose house do we visit first?"

"I nominate P.I.O'S house, President! I heard he's got a pool in his house!" the Vice-president Shuuya-kun said.

"N-no we don't! Those are just false rumors!" was P.I.O Nagato-kun's retort.

"I've already been to his house. Let's go somewhere we've never gone to!" Treasurer Shirota-kun said. Indeed, that would be a good start.

"We've never been to President's house!" Social Manager Kyuugetsu-kun declared, to which Tamaki-kun shook his head.

"We must save the visit to the club presidents' houses for the last, since we're special like that!" he proclaimed.

"You don't even act like a president, senpai. Kyouya-senpai does more work than you do," Haruhi said bluntly, causing Tamaki-kun to fall over animatedly. And off he went to his emo corner once again.

"Hmm, let's see…Whose house haven't we gone to yet…?" I mumbled to myself as I looked around the room. Then I spotted that flock of auburn hair. There you are. "I highly nominate Rin's house!" I declared and instantly, Rin turned around and dealt me her best death glare so far. Of course, everyone else in the room were scared almost to death, except me, Mori-kun, Kyouya-kun, and Hunny-kun.

"B-but p-president, haven't you g-gone to h-her house a l-lot of times?" Nagato-kun replied shakily. I saw Rin smirk in delight. She might think she has won, but she's wrong. Like hell I'd let her win.

"Actually, Rin just moved to a new one, so I haven't gone to it yet. Right, Rin?" I grinned evilly as I turned to her.

"You liar! I never moved!" she replied infuriated.

"My, my, it's not good to lie, Rin." Then I went near her and leaned over to whisper in her ear, "You want me to tell them?" I stood back up straight and saw she eyed me with genuine anger in those sea-blue eyes of hers.

"You bastard!" She clenched her fists but before she got a chance to lunge them at me, I wrapped her in an embrace.

"Calm down, Rin. It's just going to be a little visit," I whispered into her ears as quietly as I can while running my hands through her hair. "I swear I won't let them know."

"Then why did you nominate my house?"

"So that the visit to your house will be done with as quickly as possible. He's coming next week, remember?"

"Understood."  
>"Good." And I broke our embrace then faced everyone else, who were bewildered by our actions. "Everyone, Rin has agreed to it! So, when and where will it be?"<p>

"Uh… 9:30 am at Saturday, meeting place here at school?" Tamaki-kun said, still shocked about the fact that _the _Rin agreed to it.

"Is everyone free on that date?" I asked and they all nodded. "Awesome! So, what're you all waiting for? Let's start cleaning up so we can go home!"

"The hell I'm cleaning! I'm outta here!" Rin said as she exited the room.

"Ah, Rin-chan!" Hunny-kun called as he went out after her. We proceeded with cleaning, and in a short while, Hunny-kun came back and cleaned with us. Soon, we finished cleaning and one by one, everyone exited the room. I was the last one to get out, since I had the keys to the room. To my surprise, Mori-kun and Hunny-kun waited for me outside the room.

"What're you guys doing here? I thought you had gone home," I told them as I closed the room's door and locked it.

"We want to walk home with you, Miyo-chan~!" Hunny-kun stated as he skipped down the stairs.

"Huh? Why? And wait, you don't even know the path I take when going home," I told them as we exited the school and passed the school gates.

"Of course we know~! We take the same path~!"

"Eh? How did you know that? Even I didn't know."

"This morning, when we went out of our apartment building, me and Takashi saw you walking by, so we secretly walked behind you~!"

"I really never noticed! So, mind telling me the reason you want to walk home with me?"

"Mitsukuni wants to ask you some things," Mori-kun said. It must be about what happened earlier, huh?

"Oh, about that earlier? Oh, nothing. I just told her to calm down. Nothing works better at calming Rin down than hugging her!" I said as I faced Hunny-kun.

"So, why did she get angry? Was she that against going to her house?" Hunny-kun asked.

"Yes."

"Why?" I paused. Should I tell him? I stopped in my tracks, and they did as well. I shook my head. I can't. I must not break my promise with Rin. If Hunny-kun should know, I'll let him find out himself.

"Sorry Hunny-kun but, I can't tell you. I promised Rin I won't tell anyone. Sorry, but I hope you'll understand." Hunny-kun looked at me with confused eyes, then nodded.

"Okay, I understand." I sighed in relief and smiled at him. Thank goodness he isn't the pestering type. I would've had a hard time there.

"Thank you." I patted his head and continued walking with them. Soon, we reached an apartment building and they bid goodbye. I waved at them as they entered the large building. So this is their temporary place, huh? Well, they're good enough at living as commoners. I walked on towards home, still bothered about Rin. Maybe I might have forced the visit too much. I turned around and ran off to where Rin's house was. She might be thinking about it too much right now. Plus, I didn't even apologize. I had full knowledge that she can't deal with those memories the house visit has brought back. No, I brought it back. I was the one who nominated her house. I must go apologize. I must be there for her, especially now.

(Mori's POV)

Mitsukuni and I boarded the elevator to the floor of our rooms. He still hasn't said a word since that discussion with Miyori. It still bothered him, and me as well. What could that reason be that Miyori just can't tell? Why did Rin not want anybody to know about it? Those would be just some of the questions going around in Mitsukuni's head right now. He remained in the same state even after we got off the lift and headed to our rooms. Before we entered our respective rooms, I reminded him to brush his teeth before going to bed, as usual. But he just nodded, said good night gloomily, and entered the room. I couldn't help but want to stop him from entering and talk to me about it. I figured this would be a perfect time to do what Miyori would do when she notices someone is bothered with something—talk. As soon as I finished taking a bath and changing, I went to Mitsukuni's room and knocked on his door. Soon, he opened it and came out wearing his pajamas.

"What is it, Takashi?" he asked me sleepily.

"Oh, were you asleep? I'm sorry I woke you up," I told him, realizing I might've woke him up.

"No. I can't sleep. It's so bothersome."

"Want to talk about it?" Finally, I said it. He nodded as he went inside with me to my room. I yawned as I sat on the floor facing him. I'm getting sleepy, it seems. But never mind that, my cousin needs to talk about it, or it will probably bother him the whole night and deprive him of sleep. "So, what's the problem?"

"Rin-chan…." was all he managed to say.

"Ah, you're still bothered about that? Well, maybe we'll find out what that is on Saturday when we go to her house, right?"

"But what if we don't? And it becomes a problem too big for just her and Miyo-chan to handle?"

"If you're really meant to know about it, you will. In due time." At that, he seemed to lighten up. And for the first time since talking to Miyori earlier, he smiled, which made me smile as well.

"You're right~! Thanks for talking to me about it, Takashi~!" he beamed as he stood up. "Good night~!" he said as he headed out the door. I nodded and stood up to get to bed. Well, now that he's gotten over that somehow, it's about time to get some sleep. I do hope Mitsukuni will be able to know about that reason the one he loves could not afford to be known by others, before that reason escalates into a state where it can no longer be helped.

(Miyori's POV)

"Yosh! Now we're all complete! Well then, Rin-senpai, please lead the way!" Tamaki-kun exclaimed as Rin flinched. The day has finally come. Somehow, I managed to prepare Rin for it. Now she's mentally and emotionally stable, and things should go well as long as nobody triggers certain memories. And we had made sure beforehand that they won't find anything in her house to make that happen. We walked and walked towards the way to her house, or rather, apartment building. Indeed I lied about not knowing where Rin lived, but I didn't lie about her moving. Just earlier this month, she had transferred to a new apartment, but of course, since I'm her best friend, I knew the where it is from the start. Soon, we reached the building.

"Eh? Apartment?" asked Shuuya-kun, which made Rin whirl around with a death glare.

"What about it?" she said and instantly, the SC members froze.

"N-nothing, ma'am," they all replied in unison.

"Come on, Rin. Take it easy on them. They just didn't expect you'd be living all alone in an apartment building," I told her as we climbed up a set of stairs toward the second floor.

"Yay! I finally get to go to Rin-senpai's place! Now I can read all of senpai's mangas, and I know you've got tons of them!" Kazumi whooped in joy. Oh, right. Anime was the reason why Rin and Kazumi-chan got along with each other from the very start. They were both avid otakus, but Rin was one longer than Kazumi-chan. That's why Kazumi-chan would always come to Rin for the latest information on some anime she wants to know about, or borrow some mangas she wants to read.

"Whoa! Kazumi-chan and Rin-senpai, you are otakus, too?" Nagato-kun shrieked in joy as his eyes sparkled.

"Nagato-kun, you're one of them, too?" exclaimed Kyuugetsu-kun and Shirota-kun in shock. Well, I do sometimes see Nagato-kun reading mangas when his SC work is done.

"You must a closet otaku as well, huh?" Rin asked him.

"Y-yes, ma'am!" Nagato-kun enthusiastically replied.

"Stop calling me that! It makes me feel old!" Rin scolded him.

"Y-yes, your Highness!"

"That makes me feel even older!"

"Y-yes, Rin the Great!"

"Just shut up!" I giggled at the scene. It seems Rin has now made a new friend. This whole house visiting thing isn't that bad, after all. After going through a bunch of rooms in the second floor, Rin halted in front of one with the numbers 305 marked on the middle of the door. "Here we are." Once she opened the door, Tamaki-kun and the twins came rushing in immediately and we all shortly followed.

"Cool! It's the same size as Haruhi's!" exclaimed one of the twins.

"Yeah! And look, it's got tatami mats, too!" shrilled the other one.

"Oi oi, the way you guys are acting, it seems like you aren't living in one," I commented, but they just went off and explored the rest of the room. Suddenly, they all flew in the air. Rin had knocked the three out with one kick.

"You bastards! This is my territory, ya hear? Who told you guys you could just go around my abode in such misbehavior, ha?" Rin yelled at them. They immediately sat up straight and as stiff as statues.

"W-we're sorry!" they said at the same time.

"Okay, I'll show you guys around my room myself, so you don't go around and mess up anything." She showed us around, starting from her bedroom, the bathroom, the little kitchen, and finally, in the little room where she said she stocked all her anime stuff and mangas. As soon as she switched on the light in the small room, Nagato-kun and Kazumi-chan gawked in amazement. Thousands of mangas were lined up perfectly in the large bookshelf at the left side of the room, some stacked up beside the shelf because of the lack of space. And on the right side was a large glass closet that was almost overflowing with anime figurines and collectibles, and some of them stood atop the closet. Beside that closet were some stuff that seemed to be anime character items, usually used for cosplaying purposes, since some were giant swords and stuff like that. And in the center of the room stood a larger wooden closet. Seeing Nagato-kun and Kazumi-chan were busy gawking at the thousands of anime figurines, I opened the wooden closet and gasped at what I saw. It was filled with tons of clothes that seemed to be cosplay costumes, all neatly folded and hung. They all had corresponding footwear lined up neatly in the shoe compartment underneath the hung clothes. Whoa. I knew Rin was an otaku, but I never knew she was _this _big of one.

"I am in heaven!" Nagato-kun and Kazumi-chan exclaimed in unison as they stared agape and drooling at the things in front of their eyes. I went over to the shelf with the mangas, just to see what they really love about these stuff. I picked up a random manga that I didn't even bother to read the title. I sat down on the floor and started reading. The manga was about a girl who knew nothing about love, because somehow, she's never experienced it. No guy seemed to attract her or peak her interest, and so, it left her to wonder how it felt to be in love, and how she'll know that she was in love. Then came a guy who was very friendly and out-going. He and the girl became good friends, and soon enough, grew really close. Then I flipped the page and it showed the girl was writing on her diary.

"Why is it that when I'm with him, I don't know exactly what I feel?" the girl wrote. "First, I become really nervous when talking to him." Wait, that sounds familiar. It's exactly what I feel whenever I talk to Mori-kun, though I always try to shrug it away. "It's weird. Whenever I'm with him, I feel embarrassed, but in a good way. My heart beats so fast, heat rises to my cheeks, and I don't know why." What the…It's like she knows what I feel whenever I'm around Mori-kun. "Maybe it's because I always feel so happy when I'm with him, but why? What is the source of that happiness?" Come to think of it, I always do feel happy and light when I'm with him. And now I want to ask the same question. "He fills my every thought, even though I don't mean to even think of him."

"I know, right?" I had unknowingly said. I was now slowly relating to everything she's saying. The one who made this manga couldn't possibly have stalked me, so why does this girl know what I feel? I flipped the page to see that someone had texted the girl. She read the message aloud to herself. The message seemed to be a group message, since most group messages come as quotes. "You get really nervous when talking to him. When you're with him, you feel embarrassed in a good way, but very happy at the same time. Your heart beats really fast and heat rises to your cheeks whenever you see him or hear his voice, or get reminded of him in some way. He fills your every thought. And you'd always feel so happy with him. The reason? You love him." She was as shocked as I was. It was like an instant answer to the answer in her head. No, in _our _heads.

"I….love him?"

_A/N: Uwaahh...not so good at making cheesy stuff sound un-cheesy so forgive me! So yeah, I decided to put in a little mystery, which kind of serves as a little sneak-peek on the sequel (?) of this fic. Well, the fic will use the same time line and flow of happenings in this one, only it will focus on Hunny and Rin. I'll start working on it once this fic is done. You'll know all about that secret and Rin in A Pink and Black Summer, the name of the sequel (?) fic…so, yeah..that's all…Any type of comment is highly accepted…^_^_


	11. Chapter 11

_A/N: Gonna get me some braces tomorrow! Yay! Oh, and chapter 11 here! ^_^_

_Disclaimer: Own Ouran, I do not._

Chapter 11- Green

(Kyouya's POV)

"Yosh! Let us go now to Kyuugetsu-kun's house!" declared Tamaki, seeing we were now almost complete. Almost since some of the SC members are still not here. Nagato and Retsuro said they will be going first since they said they lived very near Kyuugetsu's.

"Eh? Wait, what about Mori-san and President?" queried Shuuya as he looked around.

"She called me just a while ago and said she'll just catch up," Rin-senpai answered nonchalantly.

"How about Mori-senpai?" Haruhi asked Hunny-senpai.

"He said he had to go buy something and will be catching up, too~!" was his reply. Hmm, the plan is progressing faster than I expected, it seems. Though it's far too early to make conclusions now. What Mori-senpai has set out to do might not be anything related to the plan, as well as Miyori-senpai's reason.

"What is it?"

"A pair of sports shoes for Miyo-chan~!" I smirked. Indeed, everything's going the way I want it.

"Eh? Why is he buying her one?" asked Kazumi, who was right beside Haruhi. A scheming smile crossed Hunny-senpai's face.

"Heehee, I know Takashi wouldn't want anybody else to know, but I'll tell you guys anyway~. Just keep it a secret, especially from Miyo-chan, okay~?" Haruhi, Kazumi, and Rin-senpai nodded as they huddled closer. He whispered the secret, and instantly, the three girls were taken aback.

"EH? He likes her-!" Kazumi shrieked but Haruhi's hand had covered her mouth. Well, it's too late for that. Apparently, though, it seems I'm the only one who heard. The others were all busy talking and goofing around, as always.

"How did you know that?" Rin-senpai questioned.

"You see, I asked him tons of questions last night~! There was this manga I read in Rin-chan's house yesterday that kind of listed off how one feels when he's in love~!" he answered.

"Oh, that. So let me guess, you asked him if he felt those feelings toward Miyori?"

"Yup~! And he said yes to all of them~!"

"Kyaaa~! This is so moe~!" Kazumi exclaimed as she cupped her cheeks. Just now, she reminded me of Renge, and how she loves to say that line.

"I even asked him a bonus question~! I made him choose between me and Miyo-chan if we got stuck in a life-and-death circumstance and he could only save one of us because he'd die if he tried to save us both~!"

"He actually chose Miyori-senpai?" exclaimed Haruhi.

"Yup~! He said it was because I am more capable of protecting myself compared to Miyo-chan, but I don't think that's all. I believe Miyo-chan can be just as strong as me or him when the moment demands her to, but he sees her as 'a delicate sheet of glass that can be broken so easily with the smallest harm', or so he said~!"

"That's how he's always seen _you_, right senpai?" Hunny-senpai nodded. "And you're okay with that?" He nodded again.

"It's about time he stops the 'servant-master' relationship he's always held for me. I understand it doesn't mean abandoning me or denying his relation as cousin to me, like what he first thought, but it just means he's finally found that one person that is more important than me or anybody and anything else. And I definitely approve of it~!" As expected of Hunny-senpai and his excellent ability to understand.

"Really? You approve of _that_ Miyori?" Rin-senpai asked disapprovingly.

"Why not? Miyo-chan is nice, strong, smiling, responsible, and smart~! Plus, I kind of see her as the big sister I never had~!"

"I know, right? I get that kind of feeling from her, too," Kazumi stated. Well, the progress in the plan is unexpectedly fast. Indeed that little trip to the amusement park played a very important role of triggering development. And with this whole house visit thing, the chances are high of faster development. Everything is going too perfectly I have to doubt for a minute if this was all really going well, or if it's just some kind of illusion to make me believe so. That is why I should not let my guard down. But the chances of my plan being a success would be about 84% by now, so there's just about nothing to worry, especially if it's progressing in this pace. I couldn't help but smirk.

"My victory is closer than you think, Miyori-senpai."

(Mori's POV)

"Here you are," the saleslady said as she handed me the shoe box in a plastic bag. I exited the sports shop and started heading to Miyori's house. I've been looking all over for these shoes that Miyori wanted to buy back at the amusement park. The shop I've just been from was the only one that hasn't sold out of it because their stock of the shoes just arrived today. Remembering that I have to catch up to Kyuugetsu's house, I walked faster as I held on to the plastic bag tightly.

_"Now that you know you like her, you should go impress her or something, just like that guy from the manga I read yesterday at Rin-chan's~!" _was what Mitsukuni told me, so I followed his advice._"You could probably go buy her something she likes, like maybe some new running shoes, since her family's quite tight on their budget, right~?" _It was then that I remembered about the pair of shoes she said she's been saving for a long time that she wanted to buy back at the amusement park. And now those shoes are in my hands, and all I need to do is giving it to her. The problem is, I don't really know where she lives, so I just followed the way to our apartment, since she lived past there. A little distance after passing my apartment building, I met a fork road. Great, now where do I go? Both the roads were uphill, and the two roads almost looked the same. As I alternated my sight from the left road to the right, I saw a woman slowly walking up the right road. I then noticed that she was carrying about 3 or 4 grocery bags, which was hindering her march up the road. I rushed over to her and offered to carry the two heaviest bags, leaving her the other two light ones.

"Why, thank you so much, young man," she told me smilingly. Judging from her appearance, she was about 30 or above. "Sorry for the trouble."

"No, it's okay," I told her with my Host smile.

"Gentlemen are very rare these days. I'm real thankful there was one around when I was having a hard time there!" I stared at her as she smiled again. Something was very familiar with the way she looks and smiles, but I can't point out what. "Do you live around here?"

"No. I just came to visit someone."

"Ah, no wonder your face seems new. Oh, my house is just a distance from here, so why don't you have some tea before you go to your friend?" She stared at me with such gentle brown eyes and a bright smile that I found it hard to put down the offer.

"If it's okay with you, then yes," I said. Well, I guess I'll have to put off finding Miyori's house for now.

"I just can't thank you enough for helping me out. I'm not really in good shape because I'm drawing closer to old age," she said and chuckled wryly. Well, I'll just make good use of the situation and ask her where to find the Furisaki residence when I'm about to leave her place. Mitsukuni did tell me not to let love get into my head too much, since most people tend to become very selfish when they're in love, or at least that's what he said he learned from the manga he read yesterday. This situation must be some kind of test or something, huh? Well, I'll just have to pass this and wait patiently, then.

(Miyori's POV)

"What's taking you so long, you moron?" Rin yelled over the phone as I lay in bed. I sensed an itch in my throat and tried hard to not cough, but I coughed in the end. Darn, now come the speculations and the questions. "You're sick, aren't you?" I knew it. I could never hide anything from her, my best friend. She's always known that if it takes me so long to get to some place or do something, that only meant I was feeling bad or something.

"Yeah," I told her as I sniffed, and with that, she hung up. Just this morning, when I was about to get up to prepare for going to Kyuugetsu-kun's house, I couldn't even move. I felt so weak. My body seemed to have turned into jelly. When I put my hand on my forehead, I was burning. I caught a fever, which made Mom hesitate to go grocery shopping. It took a lot of convincing before she finally stopped worrying about me staying home alone with a fever and went off. I then told Rin I would be catching up, thinking I would gather enough strength by this time. But I'm still as weak as ever, and now Rin knows of my predicament, and there's no predicting what she'll do. About 15 minutes after her call, I heard a car park by our house. I struggled to sit up in bed to see who it was. I recognized the silver pick-up car immediately. It was Kyuugetsu-kun's car. Wow, all of them actually fitted in the car. They got off and started pressing the button for the broken doorbell. Rin looked up and was the first one to see me through my window. I signaled them to just push the gate, since its lock was already broken and rusting. A while later, they burst into my room, with Rin leading the way.

"PRESIDENT!" the SC members chorused with worry all over their faces.

"Miyori-senpai, I heard you caught a fever!" Tamaki-kun shrieked dramatically. I forced a smile, still aware how weak I was.

"Miyo-chan, you're not feeling too good, right? Want me to give you some cake? Maybe it can make you feel better," Hunny-kun whimpered at my bedside.

"I'm okay, you guys! No need to be that worried. Just a little fever," I told them.

"You idiot! You should have told us you had a stupid fever in the first place!" Rin scolded angrily.

"Senpai, you should take it easy and lie down!" Kazumi-chan said as she set me in a lying position on my bed.

"Sorry for troubling you guys," I said with my weak voice.

"Tch. There you go again. How many times do I have to remind you what to say in times like this?" Rin seethed. Darn, I forgot again.

"Oh, right. My bad. Thanks for coming all the way here, you guys." After I spoke those words, they all seemed to calm down a little. So this is the true magic of a thank you, huh?

"Nah, it was no problem. Right, Kyuugetsu-kun?" Nagato-kun said and Kyuugetsu-kun nodded.

"Well, what are you gonna do with your part-time job this afternoon?" Rin asked. Oh, right. I've asked the manager to be in the afternoon shift because of the House Visit Escapade, and now I'm here, lying on bed, calling in sick on my first day of afternoon shift. Then I remembered.

"Oh, no! I haven't called in sick yet!" I screamed. There's no thinking what the manager will do. I might get fired from my only job this summer.

"I know!" Tamaki-kun exclaimed. "We can go fill in for her!"

"EH?" we all shrieked in unison.

"But senpai, Miyori-senpai is just one person, and there's too much of us," Haruhi-chan stated. But before I could even approve of her words of wisdom, Tamaki-kun had spoken again.

"Then let's ask the manager to allow us to! We can probably even gain more profit for the shop with my divine looks!" Ah, there he goes again. But wait, he has a point there.

"I have to admit he somehow has a point," Kyouya-kun said. "His looks and welcoming personality can be used to attract customers, especially female ones, and the rest of the Host Club and SC can be waiters and waitresses, strengthening the shop's manpower. And the good thing for the shop is that they just have to give us the salary of one person."

"Wait, am I supposed to be a waiter or waitress?" Haruhi-chan asked.

"Waitress!" Tamaki-kun and the twins said in unison.

"I agree that's quite a good thing, but the problem is if the manager will agree," I told them.

"Miyori-senpai, what do you think the Host Club's looks are for?" Tamaki-kun stated proudly and again, rose petals have swirled around him.

"Er…what about us?" Shuuya-kun asked as Tamaki and the twins eyed all of the SC meticulously.

"Hmm….their looks will do," the twins stated bluntly as they proceeded with playing on their PSP's, which left the SC members sweat-dropping.

"Thanks a lot, you guys," I told them all and slowly, they bid goodbye and filed out of my room and out the house. I smiled as I wondered just what I did to have friends as great as them. Well, whatever that is, I'll be forever thankful for them.

"You've got nothing to worry about, Mom and Dad."

(Mori's POV)

As me and the woman walked the uphill path, I noticed a silver pick-up whiz by so fast that I couldn't even see the passengers on board it.

"We're here," the woman told me as she opened the gate to her house. As I entered, I continued to stare off at the pick-up that just passed us. Then it hit me that I missed my chance to see the nameplate. She slid open the door to her old-looking, plain house and urged me in. I took off my shoes as she did and entered as she led the way to the dining room.

"Sorry, I know our house looks somewhat run-down and all, but it's sturdy enough," she told me with a chuckle as I sat down in front of the table and she lit the stove and put a kettle on the lit burner. "Please, make yourself at home." I looked around the room as she brought out some apples from one of the grocery bags and started chopping them. "May I know your name?"

"Takashi will do," I told her, not wanting her to know my true identity.

"So, Takashi-kun, where do you go to school?"

"Higurashi High." I lied. I couldn't possibly tell her I'm from Ouran. It's faster this way than having to explain what an Ouran student is doing here in a commoner's town.

"Oh, then you must know my daughter, Miyori. She's currently the president of the student council, right?" Did she just say Miyori? Or am I just hearing things?

"Furisaki Miyori?" I asked, wanting to make sure I heard it right.

"Yes. Are you also the same class as her?" Yup, I heard it right. No wonder the woman looked so familiar, especially the smile and the bright attitude. Well, for someone who has just finished a battle with cancer, she looked very strong and lively, just like her daughter. I guess there's no need to search, after all. This must be my reward for passing the "test". Well, no need to hold back now. I can tell her about my business here, since she is Miyori's mother.

"Yes. Actually, it's Miyori I've come to visit. Do you know where she is?" At that moment, she whirled around in shock.

"Eh? You were searching for Miyori? Are you one of her friends, perhaps?" Then she eyed me skeptically. I kind of had an idea what was going through her head right now, and it was a clear misunderstanding.

"Well, I'm a co-member of hers at the student council, so, I guess," I replied, hoping the misunderstanding would clear away. And it seemed it did, since the woman sighed in pure relief.

"I see. Well, it sure is nice of you to come and visit her, but I have to say you've come at a bad time."

"Why?"

"She's currently resting upstairs in her room. She caught a fever last night, and I failed to notice it. Actually, I went out to buy her some medicine and just took the chance to buy some groceries." She suddenly looked very sullen, which reminded me of how Miyori looked when we talked about her Mom and Dad. "With just the two of us here, I couldn't take enough care of her. And now I have to go buy some medicines that I forgot to buy." I knew that wasn't the only reason she couldn't take care of Miyori at the moment. She was still weak, possibly the effect of the medicines she's taking and having used most of her strength back there when she went grocery shopping.

"If it's okay with you, I can keep an eye on her at the moment," I said.

"It's okay with me, but what about you? You might have some more things you have to attend to today."

"It's fine with me. I'm free for the rest of the day, after all. Besides, I came to visit Miyori, and I might as well take care of our hard-working President, in exchange for all the good she's done for us and for the school." Instantly, a smile of genuine happiness crossed her face.

"Thank you so much! You don't know how much this means to me. I'm so happy Miyori has such nice friends!" After we finished our tea, she led me upstairs to Miyori's room. Good thing I have enough experience in taking care of a person with fever, because of Mitsukuni, or I would probably screw things up. As our march up the stairs ended, I heaved in a deep breath. Well, here I go.

(Miyori's POV)

As I lay there in bed, I heard a set of footsteps approaching my room. It seemed to belong to two people. Have they come back, perhaps? Wait no, it isn't even afternoon yet. They would probably be back about 5 or 6. It must be Mom, but who's the other person. Oh right, I didn't see Mori-kun with them when they came to my room just a while back.

"Miyori-chan, someone's come to visit you!" Mom called out. Could it be him? I shook my head at the thought. No way that's going to happen, right? But when the door slid open, my question was answered.

"Mori-kun?"

_A/N: Oh, right, I haven't read the reviews ever since I posted my attention note, so yeah…I think I'll try to read them later today. Oh, and I think there'll be only 3-4 chapters for this fic remaining, and my deadline for finishing this is on 29__th__, so it's going better than I expected.. I'm also thinking of making an extra chapter, so yeah.. Any kind of review would be accepted. ^_^_


	12. Chapter 12

_A/N: Finally back! Very very very very sorry for being so late, it's my first year in college and I had no idea I'd be THIS busy…T^T..Okay, since I've been gone for so long, I'll just give you guys a little recap on the last chapter._

_So, Miyori got a fever, so the SC (Student Council) and the Host Club decide to fill in for her in her part-time job. Well, almost all the Host Club. Mori has gone to look for and buy the running shoes Miyori always wanted but couldn't buy because of a sprain. He tries to look for her house and along the way, meets Miyori's mom, whom Mori helped with grocery bags she was carrying. Once Mori finds out she was Miyori's mom and about Miyori being sick, he offers to take care of her while her mom goes out to buy some medicines she forgot to buy. What will happen with just the two of them in her room? Yosh! Let's find out!_

_Disclaimer: I own Ouran….oh, I woke up. It was just a dream. xD_

Chapter 12- Orange

(3rd POV)

"Come now, my royal subjects! Let us go forth to Miyori-senpai's abode!" proclaimed the enthusiastic Tamaki as the group boarded a pick-up truck they managed to borrow from Kyuugetsu. They had just finished filling in for the sick Miyori in her part-time job, and it was tiring as hell. But Tamaki, the twins, Hunny, and Kazumi were still as energetic and noisy as ever, and for a tired Ootori Kyouya, it's not a good thing. Desperately trying to calm his boiling temper, he adjusted his glasses up the bridge of his nose and tried to distract himself with trivial thoughts. Then he remembered.

"Ah, yes. Any news on Mori-senpai's whereabouts, Hunny-senpai?" he asked the hyper upperclassman, remembering that Mori never showed up even when he had informed him about filling in for Miyori. Oh, scratch that. _Tried _to inform him. They've been calling him this morning as they left Miyori's house, but he never picked up. And with their hectic work at the cake shop, no one had a chance to do some follow-up calls but Hunny, whom he also didn't answer.

"Nope, but don't worry! He knows what he's doing, whatever it may be~!" the ecstatic Hunny-senpai answered with a knowing smile. The mysterious answer left millions of questions in Kyouya's head. What _is _Mori-senpai doing? Is it connected to the plan, perhaps? Or is Mori-senpai getting dragged or wandering away from the plan? He didn't know, and he never liked not knowing. But for now, he just had to wait. The chances of the plan's success was still quite high, and the possible third party, if there is any, might actually help with speeding developments in the plan. Kyouya smirked. All he needed to do now was just to watch, sit back, and enjoy the show.

(Miyori's Mom's POV)

"I'm home!" I announced, but the house was quiet. I guess Miyori's still asleep. Taking the chance of being alone in the living room, I slowly and discreetly brought out some decorations for the birthday party—a long banner with "Happy Birhtday" written across it in bold letters, some decoratives (mostly in her favourite color, yellow), confetti, and the like. I also brought out the large box of cake and carefully set it in the refrigerator. I had lied when I told Mori-kun about going out to buy some medicine that I forgot. Well, it can't be helped. I needed some excuse to go out and buy the decorative for a little surprise party for Miyori tonight, and I wouldn't have gone out a second time if it wasn't for Mori-kun. Thank goodness he was there to help me out with the grocery bags, or I would've been in a lot of trouble. He even offered to watch over Miyori while I went out and bought the decors, because if no one's watching over my daughter, I would never go anywhere away from her. And why entrust my daughter to a person I just met, you ask? Well, I never would've entrusted Miyori to anybody but me and Rin-chan, but I saw the sincerity in his eyes that told me he wouldn't do Miyori any harm, and that he was ready to do anything for her. I presume him to be a suitor, but I guess they're still at the "just friends" stage, but they're getting there. I happen to know a lot about these stuff, since I used to be our school's "Love Doctor". Girls came to me for advice in their love lives, but ironically, I didn't have one myself. It was not until Miyori's father came to my life that I truly experienced what all those girls did, and got to learn from my own pieces of advice. And now, as another year has been added to my daughter's life, she is now approaching the time when she'll need my advice. I was a bit worried about her love life, honestly. Miyori's too pre-occupied with her responsibilities in the house, the school, her studies, the track-and-field club, and her work that she practically has no time for herself. But recently, she's somehow less stressed, even though she still has work, the student council, and remaining school work plus responsibilities here at home. And now I know why. She has found a new friend, and possibly someone more than just that. I wondered how many friends my sunny and cheerful Miyori must have now after 18 years of existence as I struggled to tie one end of the banner on a high beam near the ceiling. Then I heard a knock on the door. I went over, secretly hoping that Miyori's friends have come to visit her. Opening the door, the first people to meet my sight were Rin-chan and Kazumi-chan, and right behind them were, if my memory serves me right, some members of the SC, whom I somehow recognize from a picture of the SC Miyori showed me years ago, and a group of people I don't know. The new unfamiliar faces were all quite good-looking, one a dashing blond with intoxicating blue eyes, twins with striking red hair and a mischievous glint in their identical emerald orbs, and a little boy about as tall as Rin-chan, his brownish-blond hair bouncing as he jumped up and down in place while hugging a pink stuffed bunny. There was also a bespectacled dark-haired guy who had calculating grey eyes, and a girl whose chocolate brown hair was cut in a way that could fool anyone into thinking she was a guy if she wore men's clothes.

"Yo, obaa-chan!" Rin-chan greeted, as always calling me that term of "endearment"—old lady.

"My, my, what are you guys doing here at 5 in the afternoon? Playtime's only up to 4pm, you know," I teased and Kazumi giggled childishly.

"Aww, come on, obaa-chan! We want to play with Miyori-senpai!" she retorted with her customary pout.

"Haha, okay, okay. I see you've even brought the SC members and some new faces! New friends of Miyori, perhaps?"

"Precisely, madame!" said the blond guy gallantly as he stepped in between Rin and Kazumi. "Please allow me to introduce ourselves!" He bowed in a prince-like manner but was suddenly shoved aside by the guy with glasses. "Hey, why did you—" He protested, but was met with eyes screaming murder. Instantly, he shrunk and paled as white as paper.

"Please, allow me," the glasses guy told me with a polite yet somehow plastered smile. "We have indeed come to visit our Miyori-senpai. We are also students of Higurashi High and have volunteered to work for the student council this summer in gratitude for Miyori-senpai's efforts for the betterment of our school." He spoke very formally, though everything he said somehow sounded rehearsed. "I am Ookami Kyouya, and that blond guy just now was Suzumi Tamaki." In the corner of my eye, I saw the guy called Tamaki twitch at the name Suzumi. I wonder why. "Those two are Hinamori Hikaru and Kaoru," he faced the identical redheads and they, too, twitched at the mention of their family name. That's strange. "This is Nozomi Mitsukuni." The little boy he referred to flashed a wide childish grin. "But you can call him Hunny-kun. It's his nickname."

"I can see why," I smilingly commented, noting how the boy appeared very sweet, as sweet as honey and cake.

"And this is Suzuna Haruhi," he said, pertaining to the brown-haired girl.

"Pleased to meet you, Furisaki-san!" she greeted politely with a noticeable boyish hint in her voice.

"Well, it's a pleasure to meet all of you! Please come in!" I said, ushering them into our shabby little home. "I'm sorry if our household could be a little inconvenient, hehe.." I said sheepishly, but all I saw were excited faces and stares from most of them. Then we got to the living room, and came all the questions and reactions.

"It's Miyori-senpai's birthday?!"

"We totally forgot!"

"Eh, President's birthday was today?!"

"Did you know it's today, Rin-senpai?" Kazumi asked Rin, who had a deadpan expression on her face.

"Ah, I forgot," she simply replied, which made almost everyone face-palm. But I just laughed, knowing Rin-chan would never forget one of the most important days of her best friend's life.

"Furisaki-san, we want to help out in the preparation!" Shuuya-kun and Nagato-kun told me in unison.

"Why, thanks so much! I do need some help with tying the banner up that beam…" Just as I said that, Shuuya-kun and Nagato-kun instantly grabbed for the banner and started tying it up to the high beam.

"We'll help, too!" all the others chorused in enthusiasm, well, except for Kyouya-kun and Haruhi-chan. But soon they joined in, and the whole place was slowly getting filled with the bright and lively decorations I had bought. I proceeded to the kitchen to prepare the food, trying to hold back tears of joy. My only daughter has indeed found such great friends. Because of them, Miyori is now learning to unwind, to let go of some stress, and to take off her mind from the burden of my sickness and the gravity of her father's death. I've been longing for this day when my daughter will be free. And it has come.

(3rd POV)

The weak rays of the setting sun beamed softly through the windows and on the two people sleeping on the bed beside it. After a day of intense mental exercise (chess, card games, board games, etc.), Miyori had fallen asleep, and so did Mori. The fever-stricken girl liked to play games that exercised analysis and strategy skills whenever she felt sick, and after almost a whole day of that, of course her brain got exhausted. And after finishing a game of Scrabble, she fell asleep instantly. But the smile on the redhead's face was not just caused by the day of healing mental games. It was because of the dark-haired guy beside her. Just when she least expected, and most needed, his presence and his help, he came. He watched over her, fed her, gave her meds, fetched her water and anything else she needed, and even took the time to be her opponent in the mind games. She appreciated his efforts more than he'll ever know. Even just seeing him made her feel at ease, and free. And Mori, whose strength and stamina was thought to unlimited, has worn himself out with the mind games. Not that he found it hard, he just wasn't used to it. Even in classes, he didn't really have to think much to get the lesson, so he practically didn't have to analyze or think much except when practicing kendo for strategizing excellently. But just now, he has gone through a long day of playing chess, Scrabble, Word Power, Chinese Checkers, and all the card games they knew that he instantly felt worn-out and sleepy. And we all know what a sleepy Mori will do. Good thing he fell asleep just when he was just millimetres away from her and has just unbuttoned the first two buttons of his white polo shirt. And now, the two slept peacefully beside each other, face to face as they breathed almost in perfect synchronicity. They were a perfect picture of a couple sleeping soundly together in the mild afternoon.

"AAAAAHHHH!" There suddenly came a loud shriek from below, and following it, a loud crash. Mori and Miyori were stirred awake at the same time, and the fact that they woke up to each other in one bed didn't even register in their minds. Only one thing crossed their minds. Miyori's mom was in danger. The two instantly got up on their feet and rushed out of the room and down the stairs, all the while hearing more and more noises from more and more people, and most of them were men's. Miyori quickly opened the door to the living room, with Mori following closely behind. But when they got there, the room was all dark. The lights were shut, and it was as if a group of people covered all the passageways of natural light. There was complete silence, which unsettled Miyori the more. What has happened to her mom?

(Miyori's POV)

"Mom, are you there?" I called out in the darkness, feeling my eyes starting to fill with tears. Then all of a sudden, all the lights went on, sending some 10 seconds of migraine to my brain.

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY MIYORI-SENP—" was what I managed to hear from the familiar voice of Tamaki, Hunny-kun, and the Hitachiin twins. Why they suddenly stopped in mid-sentence, I didn't know. But as soon as my head cleared and I could see clearly, what met my sight were all shocked, and blushing, faces. I instantly turned to my left, where Mori was, and it hit me like a bullet train. Mori's hair was a mess, and the first two buttons of his polo shirt were unbuttoned. I also realized I still had bed hair and, of all times, I chose today to wear my favourite red night gown, which raised all the more suspicion. Then I realized I was staring at Mori-kun the whole time in shock, and he was doing the same.

"I-i-it's not what you think!" Mori-kun and I stuttered in unison at the crowd in front of us, both of us probably beet red at the thought of what was going on in their minds.

"M-mori-senpai…no way…" Tamaki and the twins said with wide eyes. Hunny-kun, Kazumi-chan, and Haruhi-chan just stood there agape, and Rin shook her head in shocked disbelief.

"I never knew you were the chance-grabber type, Miyori," she said. Behind her, Kyouya-kun was writing in his mysterious notepad thingy, unable to contain a wide smirk. And even the SC members were there, gasping and staring at us with red faces, just like everyone else. And Mom? Well, she was clasping her hands together and worriedly stared at Mori-kun.

"Mori-kun, please tell me you used protection," she pleaded, and Mori-kun went a shade redder.

"I promise you, ma'am, we did not do it," Mori-kun defended firmly, a cornered expression on his face.

"We just fell asleep, okay?!" I decided to say in defense. "He was taking care of me while Mom was away, and I even made him play a thousand board games and card games today, so of course he got tired and he fell asleep!" Mori-kun just nodded beside me, but they still eyed us suspiciously.

"That's preposterous! Mori-senpai never gets tired!" Tamaki objected, and was agreed to by the Host Club.

"No. I do get tired," Mori-kun retorted bluntly.

"But there isn't a single thing you get tired of doing, as far as I know," Hunny-kun said curiously.

"Mind games. I just found out as well." Mori-kun turned to his right shyly, embarrassed by the new truth of him being revealed to everyone. Convinced now, they laughed at Mori-kun's unexpected behaviour. Then, the fact that our living room is set for a birthday party settled into my mind. I'm having a birthday party. I haven't had one since Dad died. And most of all, everyone's here, and not just me and Mom as usual. After their laughter died out, they all turned to me.

"Well, since there was a little interruption just now, I demand that we start over!" Tamaki declared and immediately, I was escorted out of the room by Retsuro-kun.

"Just wait for about 30 seconds to enter, Pres," he instructed me as he returned to the room. They're still probably making a few more preparations, so I stared at the wall clock near the stairs as I waited for 30 seconds. Once their time was up, I entered the now dark living room. After a whispered "1, 2, 3, go!", the lights went on.

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY MIYORI!" they all greeted in unison as the twins sprinkled confetti beside me. Then my mom embraced me, and before I knew it, tears were flowing down my cheeks.

"Happy birthday, my dearest Miyori," Mom whispered lovingly into my ear as she planted a kiss on my cheek.

"Thanks so much, Mom," I told her. And as if a cue to stop the mushiness and continue with the fun atmosphere, Rin went up to me and off went a camera flash in front of my red, teary eyes.

"I am so making a huge billboard of this and put it in school. Checkmate, crybaby!" Rin taunted, which instantly made me twitch in annoyance.

"Hand over that camera now!" I yelled as I chased Rin around the room. as I finally cornered her, Kazumi, like always, stepped in between us like a referee.

"Alright, enough of that, you two!" she said, forcing authority into her childish tone. "Miyori-senpai, if you're not going to take a bit of your own birthday cake, Hunny-senpai's going to devour it before you do!" I turned to Hunny-kun, whose hands were just millimetres away from a slice of cake. In a flash, I rushed over and grabbed that piece of cake with a victorious laugh.

"Stop, president! You have to blow the candle and make a birthday wish first!" Nagato-kun interrupted as I was just about to take a bite.

"Oh, right! My bad, hehe…" I scratched the back of my head clumsily, making everyone laugh again. I closed my eyes as I wished for that pair of running shoes I've always wanted, then blew the candle once I was done. Then, the party began.

(Haruhi's POV)

After the eating and a little message from one of the SC members and Miyori-senpai's mom, the next part of the party began—gift giving. Miyori's mom was the first to give her gift, of course.

"Alright, it's our turn!" Tamaki said proudly as we all stood up and gathered around the celebrant.

"It might be a bit more than what you expected since there were a lot of us, but here's what we promised you earlier, senpai," Kyouya-senpai said politely as Rin-senpai handed the now gift-wrapped envelope containing we earned for Miyori-senpai.

"From the Student Council and the Host Club…HAPPY BIRTHDAY!" we said in unison to the teary-eyed senpai as she happily received it.

"I can't believe you worked too, Rin!" Miyori-senpai commented.

"Heh! I'm not _that _lazy, y'know. Besides, a group effort ain't that hard," Rin-senpai retorted coldly, but Miyori-senpai just smiled, since she knew what Rin-senpai really meant. After that part, it was time for the celebrant to give her message. Miyori-senpai thanked each and every one of us, really mentioning our names and what little things we've done for her that even we can't remember. And when informed that Mori-senpai had not been part of the gift from the SC and the Host Club, she just said that him being there for her today was already a gift. But little does she know what else Mori-senpai had in store.

(Mori's POV)

"Yosh! Since the stars are now out, the last part of our program would be some stargazing!" Tamaki declared as we all filed out the house and into the quaint front yard of the Furisaki's. I stared at the small dipper constellation as I inwardly commented how I was very not myself today. I bought the pair of shoes she's always wanted, knowing I'm currently at a commoner's budget, watched over and took care of her once I knew she was sick, and even agreed to play more mind games than my stamina can take. As far as I remember, I'm only like this with Mitsukuni. Well, until now, that is. So this is what happens when you love a person, huh? You end up doing anything for her, not minding your own expense. This has also been such a weird day. I've been talking a lot today, and even accused to have taken advantage of Miyori. I would never do that, though I'm sure my sleepy side must have thought otherwise. Good thing I fell asleep before I really did anything to her. I sighed in relief at that thought and then turned to look at her. Miyori just stood there, staring both in amazement and longing at the star-spangled sky.

"Your father must be up there, happily watching you," I said as I reached her side, which caused her to turn to me in sudden shock, probably because I suddenly spoke.

"Mori-kun! Don't surprise me like that!" She giggled as she grinned at me, then went back to my statement. "Yup. You know, that's what I always think of whenever I stare at a starry night sky. That Dad is one of the bright stars up there, just watching me, his smile as bright as the star that represents him." She smiled as she threw a question to me. "How about you? What do you think of when you look at a starry night sky?"

"That you think your Dad's up there and watching you." I blushed as I finally realized what I just said. It just came out of me, and it was never like me to say anything without thinking it through first. But somehow, when I'm with her, I just lose that skill completely. When I turned to look at her, she just stared wide-eyed at the ground, her face becoming redder by the second. Seeing I should break the ice, I cleared my throat, and realized too late that that was such an awkward thing to do. "Uh...So, what did you wish for?" Well, I've really been curious about that.

"W-well, I'm not supposed to tell you, right? But you already know…." she replied rather sheepishly, which was not like her. Well, it's good to know I'm not the only one who's not himself right now.

"You never really told me, you know."

"Well, maybe not directly, but I even raced for it, remember?"

"Ah, the shoes. Okay." Then I remembered. I had bought those shoes earlier. I believe I left them at the dining room earlier when I was talking to her mom. So, thinking up an excuse to go back there to get it, I said, "I'm thirsty. I'll go get some water. Be right back." Once I entered the room, I searched for them and fortunately, they were still where I left them. With the shoes in hand, I went back to her, tapped her shoulder, and held it up to her.

"Was this your wish?" I asked, not able to contain a smile. She took the paper bag with wide eyes, and when she saw its contents, she gasped, shrieked, and jumped around in joy. Everyone's attention was then drawn to her, and she chose that moment, of all moments, to jump at me and wrap me in a tight embrace. I felt the blood rush to my cheeks as I felt her head buried in my chest. I swear I could have died of a heart attack right then and there.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank youuuuu!" she shouted childishly, then looked up at me with the biggest and sweetest smile I have ever seen her flash at me. Suddenly, shock and embarrassment washed over her face as what she just did dawned on her. Immediately, she released her arms wrapped around my body and hid half of her beet red face with the package I just gave her. "I-I-I'm sorry! I-I don't know why I did that! Aaah, I'm so stupid!" She pounded her head with her fists animatedly, which I find very cute. But still I have to stop her, knowing she might really knock herself out. I grabbed her left wrist and she stopped as she stared at me in bewilderment.

"It's okay, I understand. You were just so happy. It's your wish, after all," I calmly said, noting that everyone else is watching. Then, as expected, the teasing came, and all I could do was stare at them with my usual blank expression, and Miyori went off chasing them off in a fit of flushed anger. Then unconsciously, my thoughts went back to that moment. Well, if no one else was there at that moment, I would've hugged her back. But it's okay, it's enough for me to just see her happy. That would be all I want for this girl that I really love.

(Kyouya's POV)

I calmly jotted down notes as the others were being chased by an angry and annoyed Miyori-senpai. Now, the plan has progressed to a 99% success. Well, it's about time.

"My turn."

_A/N: Yay! Happy birthday, Miyo-chan! Hehe…hope you enjoyed..And the next chapter will surely reveal Kyouya's plan, I guarantee you…hehe…oh, and my next update will be on March…. I'm studying at a school far from home right now, and there's not much internet access, so that's why my updates will be very slow from now on…but I'll do my best to finish this fic in the summer! I can't promise that, though, but I'll do my best! Gambaremasu! Yosh, keigee signing off! ^_^_


	13. Chapter 13

_A/N: Just graduated from a one-year course! Ah yeah! So yeah, I know I've been gone really really long, so here are two chapters to make up for it. Well, hope you enjoy! ^_^_

_Disclaimer: I own Ouran DVD's, but not Ouran. :D_

Chapter 13- Red

(Kyouya's POV)

"Thank you so much, sir," I said politely as I bowed in front of the old man.

"Oh, no problem, Kyouya-kun," he replied. "I should be thanking you for all that information, and for that brilliant suggestion. I'll see to it that he knows about this as soon as possible. Well then," he said as he stood up slowly. "I must attend to my business now. Feel free to drop by some time, okay?"

"Yes, sir. Well then, I'll excuse myself." I bowed once more at the doorway before exiting the house, unable to contain a small, well-hid smirk on my face. After the initiation of Phase 1 ten days ago, I have just initiated Phase 2. Now I'll just have to wait for the trigger for Phase 3, which is Miyori-senpai. I couldn't suppress a small, low chuckle. If all goes well with Phase 2, then my plan would be sure-fire success. And if it doesn't well, I've had an equally successful Plan B in my mind before I even started off with this current plan. And it isn't too late for that plan, either, just in case Phase 2 doesn't work. Well, let's just hope it works, anyway.

(Haruhi's POV)

"Hey Tamaki-kun, where's Kyouya-kun?" Miyori-senpai asked the Host Club president, who is seated at the front seat of Kyuugetsu's car. With Kyuugetsu on the wheel and Kyouya-senpai's directions in Tamaki-senpai's phone, we head to Hikaru and Kaoru's apartment, us girls seated on the passenger's seat, and all the guys seated at the back of the pick-up truck. Eleven days have passed since Miyori-senpai's birthday, and we had just finished the house visits to all the SC members yesterday.

"Well, he called me this morning and said his father had required him to be present in a meeting yesterday at Paris, and they're still on their way back right now. He said he'll be catching up to us," Tamaki-senpai replied. "But I pity him, because he'll miss out on all the fun!" I saw him in the side mirror grinning and crossing his arms over his chest.

"Do you mean your stupidity, senpai?" I said bluntly, dismissing the wailing blond at the front seat as everyone else snickered.

"Hey Tamaki-senpai, are the Host Club members' apartments near each other?" asked Kazumi.

"Nope. I had us all in good distances apart from each other so that we can really feel the essence of independent commoner living!" Tamaki-senpai retorted, to which I sighed. Ah, senpai and his commoner enthusiasm.

"So where do the others live?" Kazumi asked again.

"For now, I only know of Hikaru and Kaoru's, because Kyouya sent me directions to their apartment last night. And for Haruhi, the Host Club has gone there last year, though I don't quite remember the exact address. For the others, I really don't know yet. Kyouya's got all the details.

"Well, I'm sure Miyori would know where Mori's house is," Rin-senpai stated, and immediately, teasing stares shot at her from all of us, well except for Kyuugetsu, since he has to keep his eyes on the road.

"W-what? No I don't. We've never been there yet!" Miyori-senpai said with furrowed eyes, an attempt for a confused façade, but only we could see the evident red glow on her face.

"So senpai, has he asked you out already?" the ever-curious Kazumi asked, making Miyori-senpai's face as crimson red as her hair.

"O-of course not, you idiots!" she shrieked in defense.

"You calling me an idiot?!" Rin-senpai grumbled as she threw a fist at Miyori-senpai, who blocked it easily with one hand. "You owe me a lot for giving me cavities because of your lovey-dovey sweetness with that living pillar called Mori! You're together so many times that it's like you're glued to each other."

"You're going out with each other, aren't you, senpai?" queried Kazumi.

"N-no we're not! Seriously guys, we are not, I repeat, NOT in a relationship!" Miyori-senpai said.

"But it seems like that to us," I commented, and everyone except Miyori-senpai gave an affirming nod.

"Yup. You're in _that_ level of closeness, as we have observed these past few days, not to mention the days before that," Tamaki-senpai stated.

"You like him, don't you?" Rin-senpai asked, squinting her eyes at the senpai in the hot seat.

"W-well, w-what kind of l-like do you mean?" Miyori-senpai asked, unawarely giving herself away with her stuttering.

"Y'know what I mean. Stop feigning innocence. Really, when will that living pillar ask you out? Because seriously, you two are so close, the only thing you need now would be some wedding rings and marriage vows." Rin-senpai shot her best friend a smirk with knowing eyes, clearly indicating that she was serious about her statement.

"You've got to be kidding me, Rin!" Miyori-senpai retorted in surprise at the fact that just hit her. The teasing continued, each one gathering proof by recalling every romantic moment that took place these past few days. Then soon enough, Kyuugetsu stopped in front of an apartment building, and we all got down from his car. Mori-senpai held the door for us, or maybe just Miyori-senpai for that matter. Well, Rin-senpai's right. I don't know why Mori-senpai isn't asking her out yet, since it's pretty clear they love each other, but I sure hope he'll ask her out soon.

(3rd POV)

"I want seconds!" Tamaki exclaimed at Miyori, who was serving the rice for their little dinner in the Hitachiin's apartment. Kyouya, who had just arrived, also passed his empty bowl to Miyori. Since the twins' food supply was more than they could consume for the rest of the summer vacation, the group decided to have a little dinner there. They had finished goofing around in the average-sized apartment the whole afternoon, with Miyori and Mori avoiding each other as much as possible. Miyori couldn't take her thoughts off Rin's statement this morning, and didn't want any more teasing with him around, because she was afraid their theories would be proven right. But for Mori, even seeing Miyori was the most painful thing in the world. Her sweet and vibrant smile, the spark in her eyes, and all her happiness—that would all soon disappear because of him. And because of a stupid tradition. Of all times for his father to decide on it, he chose now. Now, of all times. Now, when he was finally so happy. Now, when he has grown to love her so much. And the very thought of having to let her go gripped his heart so tight he found it hard to breathe.

"Takashi, won't you have seconds?" Hunny asked, snapping his cousin out of his reverie. It was then that Mori noticed that he was staring at his empty bowl the whole time. He shook his head no, trying hard to mask the pain in his eyes, knowing his feelings and thoughts were always crystal clear to Hunny. He probably even knows about it by now, though Mori never had the courage to tell even his closest cousin about it. "Takashi? Is there something bothering you? Do you mind telling us about it?" Yup, he knew, alright. Everyone gradually fell silent as all eyes fell on Mori. Well, this was it.

"I'm getting engaged."

(Miyori's POV)

I froze. Everything else seemed to, as well. A sharp pain drove through my chest, hindering any movement. All I could do was sit there and stare at the floor. After he said that, I just went deaf and numb. With hurt. Because I didn't see it coming. Even though I was aware of the fact that arranged marriages are a regularly-observed tradition among the rich and elite. But I chose to forget. I chose to forget about that. I even chose to forget who he really is—an elite, a Morinozuka, an existence from a world many light years from mine. I chose to forget that commoners like me have no place in their world, the world of the rich. Why? Because I didn't stop myself from growing to love him so much that I also began to hope that maybe this one time, tradition would be changed just for us. But of course it won't. The only place that would happen is in fairytales, and I'm not in one. But my mistake is, I didn't realize that sooner. And this is what I get. I couldn't blame Mori, or even that marriage tradition rich people follow. He was doing the right thing in obeying the authority he's under. I could only blame myself for not being more careful not to end up too hopeful. If I had stopped myself, I wouldn't be this disappointed. I wouldn't be this hurt. I want to disappear. I want to go home. Thinking up an excuse, I brought out my phone and played a ringtone. As I brought it up to my ear, I stopped the music and pretended someone was calling.

"Mom?" I said, forcing down the lump in my throat. "Ah, right. Sorry, Mom. Yes, we just finished eating here. Yeah. Okay, Mom, I'll be home right away. Bye." I put my phone back into the pocket of my jeans. "I must go home now," was all I said, and I ran home with full speed, not wanting any of them to catch up to me, especially not him. I couldn't bear to even hear his name, because Iknow he'd be out of my reach from now on. And I don't want to remind herself of that fact.

(3rd POV)

"What?! This early?! I mean, you _are_ of marrying age but, this is preposterous!" Tamaki exclaimed after about 10 seconds since Miyori left.

"Father told me last night," was Mori's reply. "And he wasn't joking." A reverent silence fell upon the rich people in the group. They had full understanding of how inescapable arranged marriages were in their world, and they knew how suffocating that fact alone caused. But the worst part was, in Mori's case, he had to let go of the girl he loves the most, and even hurting her at the same time.

"So," one of the twins spoke.

"Who's the cursed girl, senpai?" the other continued.

"Takanashi Izumi," Mori replied.

"Well, you were right about the cursed part," Kyouya said. "I've heard from many reliable sources that she's very skilled in kendo, considering her family's business is the same as Mori-senpai's. Seems all nice in front of public eye, but is everything but nice behind the scenes. According to information, there was this one time she fired a butler and didn't even give him his pay for that month just because he was one minute late for serving her cup of tea."

"Whoa. Isn't there any other way to at least choose who you want to marry, Takashi?" Hunny asked.

"Actually, there is," Mori replied, and instantly, everyone else's faces brightened. "Father said a masquerade ball will be held." Hopeful smiles spread across their faces, but Mori remained as solemn as ever.

"So, anyone can join?" Kazumi asked. Mori grimaced.

"No. Only daughters of the elite were invited by my father. And if I can't choose among them, I'll have to marry Izumi-san." The hopes on their faces vanished.

"Well, there goes Pres' chances," commented Nagato, who somehow got hold of the conversation.

"Yeah. Miyori-senpai just has no bloodlines or traces of being an elite," Kazumi commented. Mori's ears rung. Miyori? How did she get into the topic?

"NOOO! There must be a way! I HATE SAD ENDINGS!" Tamaki shrieked as rivers of tears flowed down his cheeks.

"Well, there's nothing we could do about it," Mori said with a painful smile as he stood up, excused himself, and started heading for the door. In full understanding, Hunny followed behind after excusing himself and headed home with his heartbroken cousin.

"This sure is painful to watch," Kyuugetsu said, breaking the condoling silence that spread over them about 15 seconds after Mori and Hunny left.

"Yeah," Hikaru said.

"Well, we can't do anything about Miyori-senpai not being an elite," Kaoru stated.

"Unless, we turn Miyori into one," Rin commented, and it was as if a light bulb lit up above their heads.

"THAT'S IT! Brilliant, Rin-senpai!" Tamaki proclaimed as he sprung up from his seat. "Since we all know Miyori would want to join the ball if given the chance, we'll help her become an elite!"

"But what if she doesn't want to?" Kazumi asked, to which Rin smirked.

"Leave that to me."

(Hunny's POV)

"I'll brush my teeth, Takashi. Good night!" I told my cousin as I stood with him at the door of my room. I knew he couldn't even bear talking right now, so I went ahead and said what he wanted to say. He gave me his usual nod then entered his room as I entered mine. We had walked all the way here in silence, but his teary eyes did not escape my radar. His eyes always told me everything, no matter what expression he had on his face. He was broken, not just because he was going to end up marrying a spoiled brat, but because he had to let go of Miyo-chan, no matter how much he loved her. I won't be too surprised if I hear him crying from the next room in the middle of the night. Emotionless as he may seem, Takashi's still a human being, who can love, and get hurt. And such a gentle person is he that I know he could never dare go against his father or family for that matter. But somehow, though I'm very devastated for my dearest cousin and Miyo-chan, I couldn't help but feel calm. Somehow, I feel assured that everything's going to work out just fine. But I dismissed the thought, seeing how everything's falling apart. I plopped into bed, my eyes slowly closing, signalling me to ride off to Dreamland. Well, I do hope Takashi gets some sleep tonight.

_A/N: Will Rin ever convince Miyori into joining the ball? What is Kyouya's plan? Find out in the next chapter! Hahahaha…yeah, whatever, me…xD_

_Comments, suggestions, and violent reactions are widely accepted. Thank ye, thank ye! :D_


	14. Chapter 14

_A/N: Well, here's the second chapter, as promised. Enjoy! ^_^_

_Disclaimer: I don't own Ouran._

Chapter 14- Of Choices and Dances

(Miyori's POV)

"MIYORIIII!" I woke up to the sound of Rin screaming my name so loud I swear the whole neighbourhood could have heard it. I sat up in bed as I glanced at my alarm clock. 10 am. Well, at least I've got nothing to do this day. After changing to a gray polo shirt and jeans, I fixed my hair in the mirror, noting the heavy bags under my eyes and hoping nobody notices, especially not Rin. I ran down the stairs and went to open the door. It turns out Rin wasn't alone. She brought everybody else to the house. Wanting to keep it cool and show them nothing happened to me, I flashed them a smile.

"Oh, hey guys! It's my turn for the house visits already?" I asked, but Rin went to take a closer look at my face, squinting her eyes at mine in wrath. "Uh…yes, Rin?"

"We've been burning in hell here for two hours, you dimwit. If you hadn't been crying all night, this wouldn't have happened," Rin grumbled, to which I raised an eyebrow.

"And you have the nerve to call me a dimwit in _my _territory," I told her.

"Yeah, whatever. Move it, we're getting in whether you like it or not." She took a step forward, but I blocked her.

"Well guess whose house this is. I may or may not allow you to get in. And I choose not to."

"Yes. Well, I may or may not tell your Mom that you were home late last night was because you were out partying and got laid, and I picked you up in the police station for doing drugs, which is the cause of your dark eye bags. And I'll choose to tell her that, if you don't let us in this instant." I smirked.

"Yeah, sure. As if my mom would believe that."

"Kyouya," she said, turning to the bespectacled guy handing her a bag of cocaine-looking powder and a piece of paper. She waved the paper at my face, which seemed to me like a realistic police report of me being found possessing and using coke. I groaned as I dealt the smirking brunette a cold hard glare.

"Okay, you win this time." I stepped aside for them to get in. We gathered at our small dining room. It was then I noticed that Mori-kun wasn't here. But it wouldn't do me any good to see him right now, though. "So, what do you want this time, Rin?" I asked as she positioned herself in front of me.

"It's not what I want that is in question right now. It's what _you _want."

"Huh? What do you mean?"

"You know what I'm talking about." Oh, about last night. "You still have a chance, you know."

"Chance? What, I'm going to break into that wedding and stop it or something? Yeah, right. Like that would work." I lay my head on my right hand propped up on the table. All chances have been thrown out the window the minute we were ever born into our respective families, our respective worlds. So what could Rin be talking about?

"There's going to be a masquerade ball, and Mori's given a chance to choose then who he wants to marry. But if he doesn't choose, then Takanashi Izumi it is." Oh, so she's the girl supposed to be marrying Mori-kun. Yup, I know them. They're pretty rich, too.

"Well let me guess, only rich girls like her could attend, huh?"

"Yup."

"Soooo…where's my chance?"

"It's a masquerade ball. No one will tell. And if they'll need papers, Kyouya's got that handled. You've already seen how good he is at authenticating documents."

"Wait, you mean to say I'm going to join?!"

"Yeah. Don't you want to?"

"Rin, that's just insane. I—"

"Do you want to?"

"But Rin, it's—"

"Answer my question, you idiot! Do you want to or not?!" Rin held me in a frustrated glare, telling me there was no use in shrugging away the answer.

"Okay! I do! I want to!" I dropped my gaze, upset that I blew the truth away, that I proved their theories right. I watched a grin slowly spreading on Tamaki, Kazumi, Hunny-kun, and the twins' faces as they cupped their red cheeks.

"So you _do _love him~!" they squealed as they twirled around in place, making me all the more embarrassed.

"O-okay, you're right! I get it! Sh-shut up about it already!" I yelled at them too loud that it brought my mom over.

"Oh, so lively here! It's nice to see you guys dropping over again!" Mom greeted us as she went over to the table.

"Mom! I am so sorry I didn't wake up to cook you breakfast today. And sorry for all the noise. You must've been asleep," I said as I stood up from my seat to offer it to her.

"No, it's okay, honey. The mom is supposed to be cooking, you know." She chuckled before continuing. "And about the noise, it's quite okay. I prefer the house to be lively than to be overly quiet."

"How long have you been up, Mom?"

"Since your friends entered the house. You've been having quite a lovely conversation here, now have you?" Just as I opened my mouth to defend myself, Mom spoke again. "No need to explain, honey. I quite understand what you're talking about." She gave me a knowing smile, to which I smiled guiltily. "Mori-kun, huh? Well, he is a fine lad, so this plan of yours is very fine with me. I figure he'd make a good son-in-law, too." I flushed red. Even Mom is teasing me.

"N-not you too!" I wailed as I plopped down beside her. "Well, maybe we can make them believe that I'm an elite with the documents and the way I look, but I'll definitely be found out with the way I act! I wouldn't know a thing about anything there!" Just then, Tamaki stepped up on the table as if it were some sort of platform made just for him, and pointed his thumb on his chest.

"That's why we're here! Kyouya! Any information on the program of the ball?"

"The information I have thus far is that the first part of the ball would be just like any other normal ball, with some dining and dancing, and within that period of time, Mori-senpai is given the freedom to choose," Kyouya said. "But if he can't choose, the whole ball turns into a contest. The etiquette, manners, and bearing will be judged from the first part, and in the second part, the brains are tested. There will be projected questions of all kinds. Those who get only 5 mistakes or below may proceed to the next stage—the test of skill. As of now, there is no available information about this part, but most possibly, both the kendo and judo skills are sure to be tested."

"Alright! I will be in charge of training Miyori-senpai on the etiquette part, along with my disciple, Kazumi." At that, Kazumi stood up in full alert like a soldier and held up a salute.

"Aye, aye, sir!" she said in a cutesy, cat-like voice, imitating a certain anime character.

"Kyouya, you'll be in charge of Miyori-senpai's papers and stuff. And also, you and my beloved daughter Haruhi will be in charge of tutoring her, though I doubt Miyori-senpai's knowledge needs much work since she's already very smart."

"Well, there are bound to be things a person doesn't know," Kyouya said.

"Hunny-senpai and Rin-senpai," Tamaki called the attention of the two bickering with each other. Again. "You and Hunny-senpai will be in charge of Miyori-senpai's kendo and judo. I'll leave it up to you two to divide the task."

"I call dibs on kendo!" Rin stated.

"I'll train you on judo then, Miyo-chan~!" he said as he lunged at me and wrapped his petite yet strong arms around my neck.

"Ow! Alright, alright! Thanks. You can let go of me now," I told him, feeling I couldn't take another breath with his iron grip around my throat.

"Tehehe~! Sorry, Miyo-chan~!" he just giggled in reply.

"And for the twins," Tamaki continued. "You'll be in charge of her apparel, hair, and make-up."

"Yes!" the twins cheered, psyched-up about doing their family's forte. They immediately started to plan the dress, discussing its over-all impression, the design, versatility, and other stuff only they could comprehend.

"How about us?" the SC members asked with eager smiles.

"Uh…hmmm…oh, some of you can act as her escorts or butlers, and some could assist in our preparations for Miyori-senpai's training, like maybe buying the materials needed. Alright?"

"Yes, sir!" they replied.

"When's the ball, Kyouya?"

"Approximately two weeks from now," he replied.

"Yosh! Plenty of time, but we shall start right away!"

"Wait a sec!" I protested. I needed to ask permission. "Mom, can I—"

"Of course, honey. But just promise me that you won't overwork yourself, okay?" I nodded at her question and before I knew it, I was practicing ball dancing with Kazumi and Tamaki in our front yard, since we didn't have much space inside the house. Kyouya was making schedules for my training, Hikaru and Kaoru were already sketching designs for my gown and mask, Rin and Hunny-kun were practicing some kendo at the other side of the yard, and the SC members were busy getting books from their houses for Haruhi to study. Just last night, I thought about giving up, because I just couldn't bear it anymore. But there was one thing I forgot. I wasn't fighting alone. I had them. Again, I was depending on myself, not letting anyone help me. But just like Mori-kun, they've taught me to share the load and not attempt to carry it all by myself. Maybe I'll let them go from my blackmail now, since I owe them more now.

_"Dad," _I thought as I sat down for a break and looked up into the sky. _"I wish you could meet these awesome people, too. Well, I guess you already have, since you're always watching over me, after all. And it's really nice to know that it's not just you, but they're watching over me, too." _I smiled. _"Thanks, everyone."_

(Mori's POV)

"Mori-senpai," Kyouya spoke over the phone. "How are the preparations going for the ball?"

"It's going well," I replied.

"Mori-senpai, do you happen to know the program of the ball?" he asked. I told him with just sufficient detail about the program, and then he hung up. That was 3 hours ago. I don't know whose house they're visiting now. Could it be Kyouya's? Or maybe Haruhi's, since Hunny didn't say anything about the visit to his apartment. But what they're all doing right now would ever be a question to me, since I can't get away from all the preparations for the engagement and the ball. I want to know. I want to go with them. I want to see Miyori. I want to be with her, just like always. But now, I can't. Everything's broken, and only a miracle could fix it. Like maybe Miyori is a long-lost daughter of a rich family, or is a relative of some elite clan. But if she were, Kyouya would have known, and they would have told me. So I guess it can't be like that. If only she could attend the ball, but there's no way to enter if she isn't an elite.

"Takashi, come here for a while," my father called, and I followed him into a room where they were having a meeting. I didn't quite catch what they were talking about, though. I was drowned in my thoughts, which is very unusual for me. I couldn't help it. I was here, but my mind and heart was there with them, laughing, goofing around, sitting beside the girl I love, watching her radiant smile, and smiling with her. To think that the other day, we were just like that, and now, those moments are like eternities away. Convincing my father didn't even help one bit. When my father's mind is made up, nothing can change it. Even when I had confessed about being in love with Miyori.

"That's just puppy love, son. You'll get over it in time," he told me. But I knew it was more than that. If only there's something that could be done. Maybe, Miyori could pretend to be an elite. But no, they check the attendee's backgrounds and documents first, and there's no way they could get away with that. So, pretending to be an elite wouldn't be an option.

(Miyori's POV)

"Well, how did your day go, sweetie?" Mom asked, and my answer was lying on the floor out cold.

"I have never been so tired in all my life," was all I could say. But really, I appreciated their help more than I could ever express. "I never expected learning how to walk properly and how to sit on the table and learning how to slice up food on your plate could be so tiring." My mom giggled.

"Not to mention the long ballroom lessons," she said.

"Yeah. Had a hard time with such a hyperactive partner twirling me around so much," I grumbled, and we both laughed as we recalled the extravagant movements Tamaki made me do. I sighed. Yup, being rich sure is tough, but I'll get the hang of this, like I've always did with everything. Especially because now, I have a very important cause—Mori-kun. He'll probably never see this coming. Well, let's just see if he could still recognize me then.

_A/N: Weeee~! Masquerade ball coming up next! Comments, suggestions, and violent reactions, come at me bro! :D_

_Oh, and I'll say in advance that it might take me another long time to upload the next chapter again, but I'll do my best! Arigato! ^_^_


	15. Chapter 15

_A/N: Weeee! Chapter 15 here! Wow, I don't know about you, but I'm finding myself quite faster this time! Maybe it's because I get quite inspired by the new songs I've been listening to lately (The Ready Set. Try listening to him, too, if you want! :D) _

_I don't own Ouran. But I'd love to someday. :D_

Chapter 15- Part One

"Kyuugetsu, are you there yet?" Tamaki asked the driver over his phone.

"Just arrived, chief," he answered as he pulled up to the red carpet entrance to the Morinozuka's grand abode. "We're here, Pres," he told the red-haired princess at the back of the limo. As great as Kyuugetsu was feeling about getting to drive a limo for the first time, he presumed their beloved SC president was feeling greater with such a fairytale-esque experience unfolding before her. But all Miyori was thinking at the moment was to go hide in some place where she can never be seen again. Sure, the whole idea was amazing, in fact, more amazing than she could take, and the training she underwent just for this—just for him—was tiring yet the most fun she's ever had. But now that she was actually here, all her bravado flew out the window in an instant. Tamaki and Kazumi had said that the factor that much pars manners and etiquette is how you carry yourself—with confidence. But right now, Miyori was anything but confident. Just looking at the beauty, elegance, and air of confidence of all the other girls made her feel like disintegrating, not even taking into thought their wealth, knowledge, fame, power, and influence, which were way out of her league. But well, here she was, guised as an elite named Suzuka Minami, and now she has to play the part. Well, she agreed to this in the first place, and she was never the type to back out on her words. Heart thumping and hands shaking, she stepped out the limo onto the carpeted floor and ascended up the stairs leading to the entrance in the most elegant way she could manage, all the while recalling what Tamaki and Kazumi had been teaching her.

_Chin up, back straight, breast out, stomach in, shoulders back. Pretend you're walking on a straight line. Don't forget a calm and friendly smile. _As they had also instructed, Miyori bowed her head slightly in acknowledgement at those she made eye contact with, which was almost everyone she passed. She presumed they glanced longer at her because she was quite an unfamiliar personality, but she couldn't deny that the Hitachiin twins have outdone themselves with her dress and mask. The first time she saw it, she swore she could never deserve to wear something as breath-taking. It was a dress fit only for a princess, but since she would be a "princess" for the night, she had her one-in-a-million chance to wear such a masterpiece. They even made an exact copy of the dress and mask just for testing. They instructed her that in time of battle, the floor-length layers of light yet puffy cloth making up the skirt part of the dress could be removed. It was only attached with simple stitches and a large, butterfly-shaped hair clamp clipped on where the skirt hem ended so she could tear it off with ease. She could then use the hair clamp to "stylishly keep her hair up", as the twins stated. She could also remove the sleeves, which fit snugly at her shoulders, leaving her with a velvet thigh-length tube dress. And for mobility, a slit ran up to almost her entire left leg, giving somewhat of a traditional-Chinese-dress impression. The dress was so awesome that after they tested it out, Kazumi immediately tried it on herself and even offered to buy it.

"Whoa! Pres, you're so beautiful!"

"I can't even recognize you anymore, Pres!"

"How did the twins do this? It's like they magically transformed Pres into a different person!" were just a few of the reactions the SC made as they stared at Miyori's "final form" just before going off to the ball.

"Guys, I'm just wearing a pretty mask and a way beautiful dress, but this is still me," was her reply to each of their wild comments about her being kidnapped by aliens and being replaced by a pretty one. She smiled to herself as she reminisced those long hours of harsh kendo training and trash talking from Rin, the harsher judo training from Hunny, and the mind-blowing study sessions with Kyouya and Haruhi. Then she remembered where she was—sitting in a table with two other girls and being watched by the Morinozukas this very moment. Recalling that smiling to oneself for no reason was a big no-no, she immediately straightened up and pulled back her calm look. And not long after, Mori's father stepped out and after welcoming and acknowledging everyone present, dinner was served, and along came questions from her tablemates.

"Wow, nice dress. That's either Furuko's or Hitachiin's, isn't it?" queried a brunette seated to Miyori's right.

"Hitachiin's," Miyori simply replied, and a slight look of amazement flashed across the other girl's eyes. "Fukushima Rika, right? A pleasure to meet you." Miyori extended her hand for a hand shake, which Rika took.

"You're Suzuka Minami, right? Of the Suzuka Hotels?" asked the other girl to her left.

"Yes, I am. And you're Kawashima Sachiko, the next heiress to Kawashima Airlines, if I'm not mistaken?" Miyori asked, and the blonde nodded and extended her hand for a hand shake, as well.

"So, were you guys forced to this, as well?" Rika asked and immediately, Miyori's mind went blank. She didn't know how to answer that. She would hate lying about it, but the truth would cause too much of a ruckus, too. Sachiko had given her answer, and the girls' eyes fell on her.

"Well, let's just say that I wanted to do this. I love my family, and this is what they wanted for me, so I obeyed. And about Morinozuka Takashi-san, I guess I'll be able to learn to love him as time passes. That is, if I be chosen." Half-lies. They always work like a charm. Satisfied with the answer, even impressed, Rika and Sachiko proceeded chatting with each other, since they were the once forced into this. So, Miyori continued eating in peace, and later on she popped some mints into her mouth. She liked eating mints when she ate in public. Then, the lights slowly dimmed and a spotlight shone upon the dark-haired prince descending the stairs. Miyori's heart leapt at the sight of him, both in nervousness, and longing. She took a deep breath. _Well, this is it._

-8-8-8-8-8-8-8-8-

"The dance is starting!" Hunny exclaimed as everyone else huddled around the Fujioka's TV. They had secretly attached a hidden camera among the colorful gems on Miyori's mask, and another one was disguised as a necklace pendant which she was wearing. With those, they'll get to see everything that happens. And now, they watched as Mori danced with the third girl he's picked so far.

"Hey guys, have you noticed that Mori-senpai's been choosing only redheads to dance with?" Kazumi commented, and they noted that indeed it was true.

"Oooh! He's heading towards Miyori-senpai!" the twins exclaimed, and the moment Miyori took his hand, the twins, Tamaki, and Kazumi squealed in delight.

"Well, let's just hope that Mori-senpai recognizes her," Kyouya stated.

"When she's _this _beautiful? I highly doubt it," Rin refuted.

"She could tell him then and there that it's her. That way, things will end quickly, and no one has to go through all those other parts of the program," was Kyouya's reply. But at the back of Rin's mind, she knew that things wouldn't go as Kyouya would plan.

(Mori's POV)

Women dressed in extravagant gowns and masks entered the venue one by one, and slowly, the chairs were occupied. After Father welcomed and acknowledged all of them, dinner was served and Part One officially started. Father, Mother, and all our men were tasked to observe one girl each for this part, and we watched hidden behind the dark tinted windows of the top floor of the building, using state-of-the-art cameras for best zooming and quality. Soon, Father told me it was time for me to go down to dance with each of the approximately 20 girls present. As I descended the stairs, I couldn't help but scan the room for those familiar locks of scarlet hair. I still haven't given up the hope that maybe, somehow, she was here. I know that if thought of logically, there wouldn't be any way for her to join. But the feeling that she's somewhere here has gotten unreasonably strong. So, I decided to dance with every redhead I see first, and when I'm sure that none of them is Miyori, I'll proceed to the ones remaining. I took the hand of the fourth redhead I've chosen, and keenly observed her and stared through the mask at her eyes. Nope, still not Miyori. I escorted her back to her seat after we made some small talk, as usual, and proceeded to the next one—the one wearing, so far, the most impressive gown I've seen tonight. It was of Hitachiin level, and the bearer's wavy red hair seemed to blend into the scarlet dress. Then, when I took her hand, something about it felt very familiar. Even her warmth felt familiar when I pulled her close as we danced. And for a moment, I couldn't process any words out of my mouth. It suddenly felt somehow awkward to make introductory exchanges with her. But, remembering my manners, I flashed my Host smile and proceeded to start a conversation.

"What is your name, fair lady?" I asked, trying to mimic how Tamaki always said it because I have to play the role of a prince tonight.

"I'm Suzuka Minami. It is an honor to meet you, Morinozuka Takashi-san," she replied with a slightly Miyori-ish tone in her voice. Then she flashed me a small polite smile that suddenly reminded me of the rare smile Miyori made whenever she became sentimental.

"The pleasure is mine, Suzuka-san. If I'm not mistaken, your hotel business made 5-star just last year."

"Well, yes. Father has been working hard."

"Congratulations on your success."

"Thank you. And I commend the outstanding, long-term success of your family, as well."

"Thank you." And after that, none of us had anything else to say. I took that chance to look into her eyes, hoping for that pair of olive green eyes to look back into mine. But I found myself drowned in a set of blue orbs, and somehow, I felt dismayed. But nevertheless, there are about five more redheads I haven't danced yet, and if she's really not here, I still have the whole night to either wait for a miracle like Father changing his mind about the whole thing, or maybe a natural catastrophe like an earthquake. Or, I have the whole night to muster up all my courage to tell my father that I won't agree to this or any engagement if it isn't to Miyori. The three minutes I estimated for each girl I danced has ended, and I escorted Suzuka-san back to her table. But the moment I let go of her hand, I felt somehow troubled. As if something was telling me that letting go of her was a big mistake. But I dismissed the thought, and proceeded to dance with the next redhead I saw. After all, Suzuka Minami is not Furisaki Miyori.

(Miyori's POV)

A hint of recognition flashed through his eyes when he pulled me close as we danced. But he must have dismissed the thought that it was me, because someone like me, a commoner, couldn't possibly join this. When he asked for my name, how I wanted to tell him. But I couldn't. I could only answer his questions according to who I was pretending to be at the moment. When a moment of silence fell on us, he looked straight into my eyes, as if searching for the olive green that my eyes had. And I saw that slight look of disappointment in his face when he found himself staring into the blue of my contact lenses, which I was tasked to wear to complete my disguise. But how I wanted to take these contact lenses then and tell him it was me. But I just couldn't say it. Everything he's done for me flashed through my mind, and though he's always told me to learn to let myself be helped by others once in a while, this was something I couldn't keep depending on him. If I tell him who I am, he might choose me, but then it will be up to him to defend me to his father. So, I will have to keep up the Suzuka Minami act this time. I will prove myself deserving for him. This is the least I could do to show my gratitude to him, and also to everyone who has helped me get where I am right now. All their training and effort would equal to nothing if I said it now. Besides, I was never the type to grab at something without exerting my fair share of effort.

(Rin's POV)

"What? They're done dancing already?" Nagato complained as we watched Mori escort Miyori back to her table.

"Wait, Pres could've just told Mori-san that it was her, and he would just choose her and it's happy ever after. But why didn't she tell him?" Shuuya inquired. Well, I don't know about them, but I expected this. Knowing Miyori, I knew she wouldn't say it.

"Well, it's either she wants to prove herself deserving to be chosen by Mori-senpai, or she wants to go through all the stages in gratitude of him and of us," Kyouya explained, then they turned to me for some sort of best friend confirmation.

"Actually, it's both," I said simply. Then, Tamaki, Kazumi, the twins, and Mitsukuni cupped their red cheeks.

"Aww~! How sweet of her~!" they swooned in unison, like they usually did when encounter such moments. And they never failed to annoy me with that. Soon, they stopped their squealing and everyone settled back into watching Mori dance with all the remaining girls.

"So, is Mori-senpai okay now, Hunny-senpai?" Tamaki suddenly asked, so thoughtfully that I couldn't believe the question came from such an obnoxious person as him.

"Well, ever since that night when he told us all about this, he's still locking himself up away from the world," Mitsukuni replied with a sullen look that I never imagined would be on that always-smiling face of his.

"Well, I do hope he knows we've always been here for him even now," Tamaki said.

"Don't worry. He does. He's just like that when he's depressed. He just wants to be alone, and I've proven that. There have been times when he couldn't bear it by himself that he would just go to me about it. In fact, the night before the ball, he came to me and poured out how hurt he was about the idea. Just don't tell him that you know about that, okay~?"

"But hasn't Mori-senpai opened up to us once when Hunny-senpai had a toothache?" Haruhi said. What are they talking about? Hmm, I guess I'll have to interrogate Mitsukuni about that later or tomorrow.

"Well, maybe he just emotes by himself or to Hunny-senpai only when it comes to the more serious stuff," Tamaki stated, to which Mitsukuni gave an affirming nod. With that, they turned back to the TV, though I had mine glued to it almost the whole time. Well, it can't be helped. I can't wait to see what happens next.

(Mori's POV)

I couldn't take my mind off Suzuka Minami. As I danced with all the other girls, I just kept on being bothered by the air of familiarity around her, even though she doesn't look or act anything like Miyori. Finally, it was time to end the dance with the last girl. As I made my way up the stairs to inform Father that I couldn't choose from any of them, and this masquerade ball will have to be shifted to contest mode. But as I climbed up the steps, my mind kept going back to that girl. Suzuka Minami. I shook my head. She's not Miyori. She can't be Miyori. She might have somehow the same smile as Miyori, but who knows how many look-a-likes Miyori has all over the world. I stepped into the elevator and went up to the top floor.

"Father, I could not choose from any of them," I stated dully. Father nodded in response and turned to one of our men.

"Begin Part Two."

_A/N: I won't promise an equally fast or faster update, but I'll make sure I'll update! Thank you so much for reading! I eat comments, suggestions, and violent reactions for breakfast, so feel free to give them! :D_


	16. Chapter 16

_A/N: Yoho! Thanks to everyone that reviewed! So, here's Chapter 16! _

_Disclaimer: Ouran I own do not. :D_

Chapter 16- Part Two

(Miyori's POV)

A sigh of relief could not help but escape my mouth as I watched Mori-kun climb back up the stairs alone. Thank goodness, I still have a chance. A few moments after he disappeared from our sight, the butlers who served us our dinner earlier started handing out a questionnaire and a pen to each of us. And once again, Mori-kun's father stepped out.

"Everyone," he spoke. "Since my son was not able to choose, I announce the commencement of the second part of the program for tonight's event." Behind him, a huge projector screen* rolled out. "In your hands right now are the questionnaires and pens to be utilized for this part. Questions of varied subjects will be flashed on this screen, and each question will be answered by shading the circle beside the correct letter of the answer. X marks, check marks, or any other marks besides shading will be counted as mistakes. Those with only five mistakes and below will be qualified to participate in the next part of the program. Thank you, and good luck." The old man stepped down the rest of the stairs and exited to the right. Then, the first questions flashed on the screen. Well, here goes nothing. Wish me luck, and your brains, Haruhi and Kyouya.

-Meanwhile, at the Fujioka's residence-

"Retsuro-senpai! Kyuugetsu-senpai! Get yourselves together!" Kazumi shrieked as Retsuro and Kyuugetsu's heads lay on the pool of blood that came from their nostrils. "Nagato-senpai! What are you doing there?! Your classmates are dying here!" Kazumi shouted at the closet otaku, who was huddled against a corner of the room, somewhat like when Tamaki goes emo mode.

"Questions are too hard…I can't answer even one of them…I'm doomed to being an idiot forever…" Nagato muttered under his breath as he shivered in fear.

"Don't grieve for our death, Kazumi-chan…" Kyuugetsu said as he coughed weakly.

"We deserve to die in such state…" Retsuro spoke.

"State? What in the world are you doing, senpais?!" Kazumi yelled.

"We are receiving our punishment…for being too idiotic…to live in a world…we barely know about…" they stated in unison, to which Kazumi, the twins, Tamaki, and the rest of the SC sighed.

"6.6 feet…Far East…the solenodon…27 degrees…a basilisk…17th century…Johannes Gutenberg…Xenon…1685-1750," Hunny, Haruhi, and Kyouya stated as they continued answering to the questions in full synchronicity. No wonder Nagato, Retsuro, and Kyuugetsu felt sorry for themselves.

"Well instead of moping there and being the idiots that you really are, I say you move your arses in front of that TV with all those smart people and effin' learn!" Rin glowered at the SC members as she gave them her best death glare. Immediately, they did as they were told, sitting still and stiff as they read the questions and listened to the answers the Host Club gave. For a while, they stayed like that, until it came to the last question.

"It's over?" Kyouya and Haruhi commented as they stared flatly at the screen. They probably felt like they still hadn't gotten to the difficult level yet.

"It's over!"

"No more mind-blowing questions!"

"Now we can die in peace!" the SC members cheered. Then suddenly, they flew in the air, being kicked by an annoyed Rin.

"You haven't even learned an effin' thing, didn't you, you darned airheads!" she snarled at them. "Why you little—" Rin was suddenly cut off in giving her next wave of lectures when a cake-filled spoon was suddenly stuffed into her mouth.

"Alrighty~! It's cake time, Rin-chan~!" Hunny beamed at her as she mumbled her protests. "Don't worry, they may be smarter than they think~!"

"You bloody cake addict! How many times have I told you to stop shoving spoons of cake into my mouth!" she screamed at the grinning blond.

"Hehe, sorry Rin-chan~! You're just so cute when you're angry~!" Rin just facepalmed at the statement, all the while hiding the blush on her face. She turned back to the TV and tried to distract herself with thoughts of Miyori and her test results.

"Whatever. I just hope that idiot passed."

(Miyori's POV)

"Announcing the names of those who have passed the test," a butler announced as he read from a piece of paper in his hands. "Please stand as I call your names." Knuckles white, I listened intently and waited for my name. I may not have been as good as Haruhi and Kyouya, but I gave it my best. I've always believed in doing my best to be the best. But three people have been called, and my name is still not stated. I guess sometimes, things just don't work out that way. Maybe my best just wasn't enough. Maybe—

"Suzuka Minami!" My ears rung and my head even ached a bit in shock. Did I hear that right? Did he just say my alias? "Suzuka Minami," he repeated firmly, to which I quickly responded by standing up. I passed? _I _passed? I can't believe this. I slapped myself lightly on the cheek, and even pinched my left arm. I wasn't dreaming. I never expected to answer even half of those questions correctly, I just answered according to what I remembered from Haruhi and Kyouya. I couldn't help but grin happily, then I remembered where I was and diminished my grin into a timid but genuinely happy smile. Wow, talk about chances.

(Rin's POV)

Everyone else, except Kyouya, sighed in relief and jumped for joy when Miyori's alias was called. For a second there, I thought she'd never pass. I gotta admit, those questions were a level harder than my maximum difficulty level, and since Miyori and I have the same IQ levels (yes, we had our IQ's tested before), I did get worried halfway through the test. But thank the heavens, she made it. We watched as those who didn't pass were escorted outside. Then, when the doors were shut, everything went pitch-black. Several shrieks and gasps could be heard from the five other girls who passed.

"Could it be Part three already?" Kyouya stated.

"This is the fighting part, isn't it?" Tamaki asked and Kyouya nodded.

"Miyo-chan~! Just remember what we taught you, okay~?" Mitsukuni cheered. Well, she better make sure she does.

_A/N: Wee~! Next part is the fighting part! Even I'm excited! :D _

_Comments, suggestions, and violent reactions are received with a smile. Like this __ :D_


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